Four Days
by VillageVoice
Summary: Zabby. Set a little more than one year after Gibbs gets his "A" team back beginning of season 6 . Ziva's father finds out about her relationship with Abby and forces her to end it or watch Abby die. She has four days.
1. Distance Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

**NCIS  
'Four Days'  
**  
**Disclaimer:** NCIS and all characters associated with it belong to DPB, CBS and Paramount. As much as I wish they were mine, they never will be. All other characters and places are mine. If there is a real person or place that I have named in my story, it is purely coincidental. Basically, I own nothing. Sadly.

**Summary:** Ziva/Abby. Set a little more than one year after Gibbs gets his "A" team back (beginning of season 6). Ziva's father finds out about her relationship with Abby and forces her to end it or watch Abby die. She has four days. Takes place a little over a year after Ziva re-joins NCIS after being sent back to Israel by Director Vance. Set future-ish, but pre-season 7. Also "Aliyah" never happened. Nor did Michael. He never existed in my reality.

A/N: I just want to say that I write things in past tense. Don't know why, but I just do so please don't critique me on that. That is how my muse likes things and I tend not to argue with her. I also realize that this chapter isn't very much like Ziva, but I like to think that this is how she is deep down inside. The part of her they don't show on TV. I also just want to say that currently I am in the middle of writing chapter 17 and intend to update once a week, so we should be good for a while.

**Reviews welcome. But please be nice.  
VillageVoice**

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"What are you doing Ziva?"

Ziva looked right into the man's eyes – right into her father's eyes if you could even call him that. She couldn't. To her he had always been the very picture of Mossad. The man whose seat at the dinner table was empty more often than not, the man she would never see as she snuck into the kitchen for a midnight snack. He was never there for a single one of her dance recitals or school conferences. A father to her, he was not. Never was and never would be. Ziva had long ago accepted that. "I don't know what you are talking about."

The older man laughed. "Of course not, no. You came here, all the way to back Tel Aviv, on the next flight out, after a two minute phone call because you had no idea what I wanted." He paused behind her and leaned down to whisper into her ear. "I have trained you better than that Ziva."

Ziva looked away. Her father had this way of speaking that made her feel as if he was right in front of her staring her into submission. But he was true; she never went anywhere without knowing why. She knew her father's 'request' for her return presence to Israel was not as simple as everyone made it seem. Still, the trained Mossad agent looked away and remained silent.

"I see two ways around this Ziva." Director David began as he resumed circling around the lone chair in the center of the room Ziva was occupying. "One, you return to America and your job with the NCIS as if this never happened. This _woman_ is nothing more to you than a co-worker. Not a friend, not . . . whatever you two are." He managed to choke out, not even attempting to hide his obvious distain. "But a co-worker. You are to stop spending nights at each other's apartments and you are never to set foot in her apartment again as she is never to set foot into yours. Do I make myself clear?"

Ziva looked up at his face mere inches from her own, but said nothing. Eli smiled. "No phone calls, no out of work meetings. If the team goes out and she is there you will not be - You are never to be alone with this woman. All pictures and memorabilia from your time together will be destroyed and that will be that."

Ziva took a deep breath and continued staring straight ahead. Letting the tears that were so close to spilling over actually be seen would only further enrage this man. Letting him see the anger that was building up wouldn't help her cause either. That would only make him smile. A smiling Eli David was a very bad thing.

"Or we can find you another job away from NCIS. Far, far away. I hear California is nice."

Ziva looked over her shoulder and glared at her father. He nodded. "I thought not." Ziva turned back around and stared at the wall.

"Option two. You refuse to let her go." He pulled a picture out of his pocket and stopped in front of his daughter, dangling the photograph before her eyes. She swore under her breath, causing him to laugh. "Indeed." He said. It was her and Abby. They weren't together. Weren't even standing reasonably close to each other, but the look in their eyes told everything and so much more about their connection. They were only looking at each other from across the bullpen at NCIS, but they weren't hiding anything. He dropped that photograph into Ziva's lap and brought out another one.

This was one of Abby that Ziva had taken not even a week earlier. Ziva tried to resist, but she couldn't help a small smile from appearing. Abby looked so beautiful. It was a rare occasion that Ziva had been able to get Abby outside during daylight hours, but she had and she brought her camera along for documentation. Abby was lying in the grass with her face cupped in her hands, her dark hair left down splaying over her pale shoulders with a single black rose tucked above her right ear. She was smiling at the camera with so much joy and love in her eyes that Ziva had to look away. It had been their one-year anniversary that day.

Director David brought a lighter from his pocket and held it to the picture, watching as the edges of the photograph slowly burned. "I don't think I need to explain to you what will happen to her Ziva, but it will cause both you and this woman great pain."

"Yes, you have made yourself quite clear." Ziva snapped.

Her father nodded. "We have an agreement then." It was not a question.

Ziva blinked and looked up at the man in front of her. The man she had at one time called Papa. He was no longer that man. She swallowed a wave of tears and anger and ripped the burning photograph from his hands, putting the thin flame out with her own hand. She smoothed out the photograph and ran a finger over what was left of Abby's beautiful face. She looked back up and met the man's gaze. "Yes."

A smile of satisfaction crossed the man's face and without so much as another glance he walked over to the door, stopping only when a knife landed centimeters from his face on the doorframe. He slowly turned to face his daughter. He knew they should have taken her weapons away.

"You _will_ allow me to say goodbye." She saw the look in her father's eyes. "Next time I will not miss. I promise you that."

Eli slowly turned back toward the door, his hand still on the door knob yet not opening the door. "You have one day."

"Not good enough." Ziva began, taking a single step closer to her father. "A week."

"Two days, no more."

"Four. And you leave us _both_ alone until that time is up."

Eli slowly turned around again and looked at Ziva. He could tell by the look in her eyes that she wasn't going to back down and if he didn't give her the time she wanted she would take it anyway and kill anyone who got in her way. He knew that look well. He had been the one to put it in her eyes himself. He nodded. "Four days." He pulled open the door and walked out of the room. He had taught Ziva well. She was by far his greatest accomplishment. He looked through the two way mirror for a second and watched as Ziva returned to her chair and looked at the burnt photograph for a minute before dropping her head into her hands. He shook his head and continued down the hall. Perhaps that was not such a good thing.

* * *

Ziva slipped in through the front door as quietly as she could. However, she knew the apartment well enough to know that it would be damn near difficult task to accomplish. Just about every other floorboard around the door squeaked when so much as looked upon. But as it was, difficult was the Israeli's middle name. She silently closed and re-locked the door behind herself and placed her bag gently off to the side before taking off her shoes and jacket and adding them to the pile. She stood up and breathed in the scent of the apartment. She closed her eyes and savored every smell. They would soon be but a familiar memory.

Her eyes fell upon something out of place lying on the couch. She smiled as she noticed the light grey sweat pants and green ribbed tank top. Abby would never own such clothing. Ziva wouldn't normally either, but Abby said the green of the top was a great contrast with the rich browns in her eyes and she never could resist it when Abby pouted. Whenever Ziva was gone Abby dug out the shirt and pants from wherever she kept them hidden and refused to take them off until Ziva returned. Ziva could only recall actually having worn them one time herself, despite the fact that they were her own clothing. She quietly walked over and placed a gentle kiss on the pale woman's forehead, letting her hand linger on Abby's cheek for a minute.

"You're back." Abby mumbled sleepily.

Ziva smiled and drew the pad of her thumb across Abby's cheek. She forgot how had her leaving always was on the forensic scientist. Her mind flew to that fateful day the director disbanded the team and she was sent back to Israel. She didn't return for four months and due to her mission she couldn't call, she couldn't write, she couldn't even e-mail. That actually wasn't entirely true. She e-mailed McGee regularly and he always made sure to tell her how Abby and everyone else was doing, but it wasn't enough. The well-trained Mossad officer knew that such little contact would only further inflame the ache in her heart and distract her from her mission, so she didn't attempt to contact Abby at all. A fact Abby never let her forget.

Abby was so full of emotion when Ziva finally did come back that she couldn't decide whether she was so mad at Ziva she didn't want to even see her or so happy for her to be back that she didn't want to let her go. She had gone with the second option.

_"There she is! Ziva!" Ziva hid a smile as she glanced over and saw Abby jumping up and down with her arms open. She greeted Agent Lee and stood there for a few seconds reading the woman. Something was off with the Agent who had occupied her place on the team for the past few months, but as the elevator opened and Lee stepped onto it Ziva turned her attention to a more important matter. Abby._

_"You're back! You're back! Yaay!" She all but ran over to Abby, dropped her bag and threw her arms around the taller woman. She laughed as she heard all of Abby's cute little noises that she couldn't keep in because she was so excited. Ziva leaned up and brought her lips so that they were millimeters from Abby's ear, so only she could hear what Ziva was saying. "I missed you very much."_

_Abby pulled back and looked at Ziva. Four months was a long time. If possible she concluded that Ziva looked even more beautiful. Perhaps distance did make the heart grow fonder. She cupped Ziva's face for a second and ran a finger over the healing wound above Ziva's right eye before bringing her back in to the hug. She copied Ziva and brought her lips down to the other woman's ear. "I missed you too."_

_It wasn't that they were trying to hide their relationship, but the fact was that they had only just discussed their feelings with each other the day before Ziva was shipped back to Israel. Faced with Jenny's death and the prospect of never seeing each other again they stop denying their mutual feelings and came clean about everything. They had their first kiss minutes before Ziva boarded her plane. They didn't know quite where they stood after that. There wasn't time before, but they were damn sure going to be certain they didn't waste any more time than they already had._

_Gibbs coughed, purposefully ruining their moment and Abby shot him a look as Ziva slipped out of her arms and into Gibbs'. He shot her a look right back. He had to deal with Abby moping around in the time following Ziva's leave. At first he had chalked that up to her missing the whole team. It was only once the Israeli had been gone a full three months that Abby truly thought she was never going to see her again and confessed everything to Gibbs. Gibbs promised Abby that night that he would get his team back. "Good to have you back Ziva."_

_Ziva smiled. "It's good to be back." She quickly moved to McGee and hugged him as well, sliding right back into Abby's arms once she was done. The hug was brief as Gibbs and McGee, mostly McGee, were asking her all sorts of questions about the past months that she had to pull away from Abby to address them. But she remained glued to Abby's side. Their fingers linked together behind her back. The feel of Abby's thumb running across the back of her hand making it more than difficult to concentrate on the men before her._

_Abby put up with the questioning for a short amount of time before she needed to get Ziva alone. "Gibbs!" Gibbs stopped mid-sentence and looked over at Abby. Abby raised an eyebrow. "We're going now."_

_Gibbs smiled and nodded. Abby wasted no time in grabbing Ziva's bag off the floor and bolting down the hall, Ziva right in step beside her not once letting go of Abby's hand. The elevator doors closed and Abby's freehand immediately flipped the emergency stop switch. Ziva pulled her hand from Abby's and grabbed her pale face with both hands, bringing their lips together before the older woman even knew what was going on. Abby reacted immediately, wrapping her arms around Ziva's neck and deepening their kiss. When they were both breathless and had to pull away to catch their breaths Abby reached over and flipped the emergency stop button again. The elevator resumed its downward descent._

_Abby waited until they were safely within her lab, all cameras turned off, doors closed and locked before she spoke. She let go of Ziva's hand and walked over to the metal table, leaning back against it. "You never called."_

_Ziva went to take a step toward Abby, but thought better of it. Then she thought better of thinking better of it and walked right into Abby's personal space, stopping when their bodies were almost touching. She reached out and took Abby's hands. "I was protecting you-"_

__

Abby ripped her hands out of Ziva's as if they had been on fire and walked around to the other side of the table. "You need a new line. All you ever do is to protect me, all any of you ever do is to protect me. Ziva I can protect myself!"

_Ziva raised an eyebrow. "Not from him you can't."_

"_Him? Who is 'him'?'" Ziva looked away. "Your father." Abby said in realization. "You're protecting me from your father?"_

_"Yes." Ziva closed the difference between them and again took Abby's hands in her own and this time Abby didn't pull away, but held Ziva's hands tighter playing with their conjoined fingers as she had done just a few minutes ago up in the bullpen. "Yes I was-am protecting you from my father. He listened to every word I spoke over the phone, read every word on every page of every letter and e-mail I sent. There was no language I could have told you how much I missed you that he would not have figured out in a matter of seconds. You get in enough trouble on your own." Abby smiled. "But this . . . this I could protect you from."_

_Abby softened and took a step closer to Ziva so that their bodies were touching and slowly let go of Ziva's hands as she slid her arms to rest around Ziva's neck. She sighed as Ziva put her arms around her waist and pulled her closer. She placed a kiss on Ziva's cheek and then pulled back slightly so that she could rest her forehead against the Israeli's. She looked into Ziva's eyes. "I really missed you."_

_Ziva smiled and turned her head so she could meet Abby's lips. She pulled away and leaned her forehead back against Abby's. "I really missed you too."_

_"Don't leave me again."_

_They left Abby's lab and the Navy Yard together that night and hadn't been apart since._

Ziva shook off the memory and picked Abby up off of the couch. The sleeping woman tried to lift her head up as she felt herself being lifted off the couch, but she was far too exhausted. No doubt she had stayed up as long as she could waiting for Ziva. "What's going on?"

Ziva planted another kiss on Abby's forehead as the older woman rested her head against Ziva's. "I'm bringing you to bed." She whispered. It wasn't long after they had first started dating that Abby's coffin had been replaced with an actual bed. The coffin was still in the bedroom, just up against a wall off to the side. There wasn't enough room for two to sleep in there comfortably and Abby wanted them to spend nights at her place since they had never been able to at Ziva's because the Israeli thought it too dangerous. Whenever Ziva wasn't there Abby couldn't bring herself to sleep in the bed alone.

Ziva gently laid Abby down on the bed, pulling the black and crimson sheets over her thin form. Abby fell right back to sleep as if nothing had happened. Ziva placed one last kiss on her lover's forehead before making her way into the shower. At least the running water would hide the sound of her crying and wash away her tears.

She wasn't in the shower five minutes when she felt the cool breeze that came with the curtain being drawn back and felt Abby slipping her arms around her waist. She choked back a sob as Abby pressed a kiss to the nape of her neck before moving over and resting her chin on Ziva's tanned shoulder. Abby turned and placed a kiss on that sweet spot on Ziva's neck just below her ear. "You're back." She said repeating her earlier words. "I missed you."

Ziva swallowed hard and put her hands over Abby's, lacing their fingers and leaning into the taller woman's embrace. "I missed you too."

Years of working with her team and another of dating the beauty before her were enough training for Abby to know when something was wrong, no matter how hard people tried to pretend that nothing was. She pulled away just far enough to turn Ziva around in her arms and Ziva immediately wrapped her arms around Abby's neck. Abby held the Israeli for a few minutes, but when the water began to run cold and Ziva's tears hot, Abby figured they'd had enough shower time for the night.

She reached past Ziva and turned the water off, somehow managing to step out of the shower with Ziva still holding onto her and grabbed a large towel out the closet and held it around both of their bodies until they were relatively dry. She was able to pry Ziva off of her enough to wrap individual towels around them both before she led Ziva by the hand into the bedroom and sat down on the bed, Ziva immediately sat down on her lap. Ziva's arms went right back around Abby's neck and Abby rubbed soothing circles over Ziva's back until her sobs subsided. She brought her hands to Ziva's face and gently guided the Israeli to look up until their eyes met. She leaned in and kissed Ziva, which only caused her to start crying again.

It was an incredibly rare occasion that Ziva let her emotions show so freely or without holding back. Abby was more than honored that Ziva felt comfortable enough within her arms to let down her defenses. She had cried in front of Abby before, but this time felt different. Abby was eventually able to release Ziva's grip enough so that she was able to pull away and look at the Israeli.

She brought her hands to Ziva's face and wiped the tears away. "Ziva?" When Ziva still refused to look up she moved one hand from Ziva's face and used it to gently lift her chin until their eyes met. It broke Abby's heart to see this side of Ziva. She would do anything to take away the pain in her dark eyes. "I'm the one who clings to people, not you." She attempted to joke, but both women knew the power of those words. "What happened with your father?"

Ziva took Abby's hand from her chin and held it in her own, encrypting the feeling to memory. "I . . ." She trailed off, not even knowing where to begin or what she could actually tell Abby or what she was going to tell her. She had expected to return to Abby's apartment and slip into bed with the older woman, hopefully coming up with something as she listened to Abby's even breathing within her arms. The woman slept like the dead. The last thing she expected was to have this conversation now. She was exhausted from the flight to Israel, the few hours spent there and the immediate flight back. At this point she was going on almost forty-eight consecutive hours without sleep. It was all too raw, the hurt was still too fresh and a little more than she could handle at the moment.

"Hey." Abby gently called as she caressed Ziva's cheek with her free hand before using it to tuck a stray tendril of hair behind the Israeli's ear. She dipped her head down to catch Ziva's eyes. "You can tell me anything."

"I can't lose you." Ziva spoke so softly Abby barely heard her.

Abby leaned back and wrapped her arms around Ziva's neck. "You will never lose me. You can't."

Ziva wrapped her arms around Abby's waist and nestled her nose into the crook of her neck. This was one of only a handful of times she had left to breathe in Abby's scent, to feel her touch. "I don't know how to give you up."

Abby sighed and held Ziva tighter all the while wondering what the hell had happened in Israel.


	2. The Daughter of Mossad

Day 1 - Morning.  
Ziva gets quite emotional in this chapter. I don't think it's OOC, just a side of her they don't show on NCIS. She's a real woman with real feelings and thought those feelings deserved some screen time. Even if it's only computer screen time. If anyone's life is crashing down around them I believe a few tears to be necessary.

A/N: I want to thank everyone who reviewed - all 3 of you. lol. I sincerely appreciate you taking the time to tell me what you think. I'm not used to getting so few reviews, so I hope it's because this isn't that "popular" of a pairing and not because no one likes the story. Time shall tell.

VillageVoice

* * *

Ziva woke-up the next morning around noon to the sound of Abby's cell phone ringing. Abby kissed her in apology and scooted out of bed, pulling a crimson sheet with her. She grabbed her cell off the nightstand and ran into the living room, pausing at the doorway to give Ziva a quick apologetic smile.

Ziva flipped onto her back and sighed. Her father's words kept running through her mind. _'Four days.' _She had no idea what to do. She couldn't just leave Abby without an explanation. That was far too cruel. Abby deserved a lot better than that, especially from her. But she wasn't sure how much she could tell the innocent woman without putting her in more danger than she already was.

Abby came back a few minutes later and tip-toed over to the bed until Ziva looked over. She smiled and batted her eyelashes.

"No." Ziva said. "No no no, you are not allowed to go into work today."

Abby adjusted the sheet around herself so that she could kneel on the bed. Ziva grabbed her and pinned her down onto the bed before she could react. Abby reached up and tucked Ziva's hair behind her ear, letting her hand trace the outline of Ziva's mouth on its way back down to her side. "They need me to go in."

"Who is 'they'?"

Abby squinted up at the officer. Ziva's interrogation tactics were not going to work here. She had been properly immunized. She brought her hand to her lips and pretended to zip them shut and throw the key out the door. Ziva shrugged and let go of Abby, rolling back onto her side of the bed. Abby huffed. She hated it when Ziva pretended to be mad at her to get her to talk. Yet she fell for it every single time. This time, however, she was going to beat Ziva at her own game. She turned on her side with her back to Ziva. It took a few minutes, but Abby broke out into a smile when she felt Ziva's arms wrap around her waist and pull her closer. "Oh come on. I'll only be gone an hour or two I promise."

Ziva tightened her arms around the Goth woman. "No."

"Three at the absolute most."

"No." Ziva reiterated.

"No?" Abby laughed.

"No, because that hour or two or three you spend there are going to be spent with McGee staring at your backside the entire time."

"He does not." Abby protested.

"He does. I saw it."

Abby turned around in Ziva's arms so that she was facing the Israeli. "You saw him huh?"

"I have. And so has Tony and Gibbs and I believe even Ducky."

"Gibbs saw him?"

Ziva nodded.

"Staring at my ass?"

Ziva nodded again.

"And Gibbs just let this happen?"

"Well both he and I may have slapped McGee upside the head when we left your lab."

Abby smiled and snuggled deeper into Ziva's embrace. She loved this protective/jealous side of Ziva. It was much more toned down than her normal jealous side, but equally as attractive in Abby's book. It was just hard to get Ziva to believe that McGee was nothing more than a friend. A lifetime of knowledge told Ziva that everyone lied. She knew that it was perhaps a little more difficult for Abby to do so than for most others, but it was hard to unlearn a lifetime. Abby knew that Ziva trusted her, but some things were just harder for Ziva to understand.

Ziva sighed. "I still _do not_ understand why he is always the one Gibbs calls to go down to your lab. I am equally as capable of riding an elevator down a few floors."

Abby leaned in and kissed Ziva. "Because he knows we would get no…" She kissed Ziva again. "..work.." She kissed her again. "…done." She punctuated her last word with running her tongue along Ziva's bottom lip and was eagerly rewarded when Ziva opened her mouth and deepened the kiss. Abby pulled away a few moments later and tucked a stray hair behind Ziva's ear. "He's just protecting us."

Ziva huffed. "I still do not like it."

Abby chuckled. "I know baby. But you and Tony are Gibbs' best agents and McGee . . . well . . . he's McGee."

Even Ziva couldn't help but chuckle at that. "Still. It would be nice to see you during the day."

"We meet for lunch."

"Sometimes." Ziva protested."Most times you go to lunch with McGee."

"Which is your fault because you're usually out playing super agent and McGee's left there all alone. Besides," She winked. "We have breakfast."

Ziva chuckled. "That is only because you get grumpy on an empty stomach so we have to wake-up an hour before the sun. And that is before the day begins, so it doesn't count."

"Breakfast starts off the day."

"Okay, so breakfast is the start of the day. I am talking about the actual day." She held Abby tighter for a second before letting go, still keeping her arms around the paler woman. "He gets too close to you."

Abby leaned in and kissed Ziva passionately. "Well McGee may get to stare at my ass all day, but who's the one with their hand currently on it?"

Ziva leaned back in for another kiss. "Good point."

"And, he may get close to me and all up in my grill," Ziva laughed. Abby was older than her, yet she still acted considerably younger. Abby grabbed Ziva's hand and placed it just above the sheet right over her heart. "But you have my heart. McGee, Gibbs, Tony, Ducky . . . they're in my heart, but you have it. No one can get closer."

Ziva smiled and brought the other woman in for a long, slow kiss. "I know, but it always seems like you like him more."

Abby chuckled. "More than you?"

Ziva ducked her head and nodded.

Abby smiled. "Aw, Zi. Why didn't you tell me you felt that way?"

"Because I do not like being such a girl." All of her years as a Mossad agent had taught her to keep her emotions well hidden. Slowly, as she spent more and more time in America with NCIS and with Abby she was learning how to show her emotions more. But sometimes they still popped up on her when she wasn't expecting them and made her feel weak. A feeling she did not like so much.

"You don't?" Abby asked. "Huh. That's one of my favorite qualities about you."

"You are not funny."

Abby brought a hand to Ziva's face and guided her eyes up. "I knew McGee before I met you. We had something once, but it's been over for years. I would knock everything off your desk and take you right then and there, but we agreed to keep things professional at work."

"I know." Ziva sighed. "But maybe sometimes you could come and talk to me instead of sitting on McGee's desk for five hours."

Abby chuckled. "I don't sit on his desk for five hours. No more than twenty minutes, tops."

"Whenever we are out in the field and something happens McGee is the first one you ask about."

"How do you know that?"

"Because Gibbs looks at him first. You always call Tony, Gibbs and McGee while my phone remains silent."

"That's because I know you're too smart to get yourself into the sorts of trouble McGee gets himself into. McGee's still a baby agent. And you don't tell me when something does happen to you until well after the fact. When you're safe and we're in bed together. Then you'll do something like run your fingers gently up my body" She said as she ran her fingertips along the side of Ziva's body from her hip to her ribs, stopping just under her arm. "And," She leaned down and gently purred into Ziva's ear. "Whisper something very slow and sexy in my ear. And then…" She pulled away and punched Ziva in the arm. "WHAM! You tell me. And by that point it's too late for me to worry because you're safe and alive."

Ziva smiled. "I don't want to worry you."

"I know." Abby pouted. "You told the guys not to tell me when stuff happens to you."

Ziva nodded. "I did."

Abby brushed her thumb over Ziva's cheek and brought her in for a kiss. "Maybe we should tell them."

"What?"

"The team. Maybe we should just tell the team. That way I don't have to pretend to be talking to McGee during our 'five hour chats' when I'm really staring at you the whole time. I don't have to pretend to be more worried about McGee when anything happens to you guys when I am so worried about you I can barely speak…" Abby trailed off as her voice cracked. "I hate all this pretending Ziva. I get so worried that someone will find out that I overcompensate and leave you out completely."

"I thought that was what you wanted?" Ziva asked, taking Abby's hand and kissing each of her fingertips.

"I thought that was what you wanted." Abby laughed, trying to ignore the tingling in each of her fingertips.

Ziva thought for a moment. If they told the team then they would be able to be there for Abby when her four days were up. She was fairly certain that they would hate her for breaking Abby's heart, especially since she would still be working with them, but they would be there for Abby. It wouldn't be easy on Ziva, but she would do anything to ensure that Abby would live a long and happy life and being with her made the 'long' part highly unlikely. Although she knew what she had to do would not make the woman happy either. Regardless, it would be better if Abby had people who could be there for her. She didn't care if they never asked her how she was doing as long as they were there for Abby. She leaned back in and explained her plan. "Let me speak to Gibbs first. Then we can tell everyone."

Abby squealed in delight. "Yay!" She threw her arms around Ziva's neck and squeezed her for all she was worth.

"Ow Abby, I need to breathe."

Abby pulled away and jumped off of the bed, the sheet that had been wrapped around her body falling to the ground. "Let's go." She grabbed her phone off the nightstand and ran out the room.

"Ah Abby." Ziva called. Abby jumped back into the room and looked at Ziva expectantly. Ziva raised an eyebrow. "How about some clothes Abby?"

Abby looked down. "Oh." She brought a hand up to her disheveled hair. "I should probably put my hair up too."

Ziva nodded. "After the clothes."

* * *

"Gibbs!"

Gibbs turned around just in time to catch Abby as she threw her arms around him. He smirked and hugged her back. "Morning Abs."

Abby pulled away with a smile on her face as she twirled one of her pigtails with her fingers. "Good morning Special Agent Gibbs." She said with a mock salute.

Gibbs chuckled and shook his head, his eyes landing on Ziva who was standing a few feet back. "Ziva. How was your trip?"

Ziva took a deep breath and spoke volumes with her eyes as she looked back at her boss.

Gibbs nodded slightly and the turned to Abby. "New evidence in your lab. Go."

"Sir yes sir." Abby brought her hand down from her salute and turned back to the elevator. She stopped next to Ziva and kissed her cheek. "Three hours tops."

Ziva smiled and squeezed Abby's hand. "It's okay. Take your time."

"I will. I mean, I always take time and impeccable care with each and every piece of evidence I am given, as I will now," She said in Gibbs's direction. "But I'm just saying. Three hours-"

"Tops. Yes I know." Ziva finished and smacked Abby's backside to push her toward the elevator. "But they do not start until you leave."

Abby turned back to the duo and smiled. "Leaving."

Ziva waited until the elevator doors closed and she heard the large metal box begin its descent down before turning back to Gibbs. He led her down the hall into a corner interrogation room. Leaving only to make sure the room on the other side of the two-way mirror was locked. He came back in the room to see Ziva completely broken down. She was sitting at the table with her head lying on her arms. Gibbs could see her body shaking as she cried. He closed the door and locked it behind himself. He didn't say anything; he had seen everything he needed to know in Ziva's eyes a few moments earlier. He didn't say anything, but just pulled a chair up next to Ziva and pulled her into his arms.

"It's okay." He soothed as he ran a hand over Ziva's wavy hair. "Shhh…" After a few minutes Ziva had calmed down. Gibbs handed her a tissue.

"I am sorry." Was the first thing out of her mouth.

"It's okay." Gibbs said and simply waited for her to continue. "People cry. Nothing wrong with that."

"I am not sorry for crying." She paused to take another tissue Gibbs held out to her. When she sat there remaining silent and folding the tissue until she could fold it no more Gibbs reached over and stopped her hand, forcing the Israeli to look up at him.

"What happened with your father?"

Ziva smiled softly. Gibbs always knew what was wrong. He was the father of his team in every way. There was Abby, his pride and joy. She wasn't the youngest, but she acted it and as such held that spot in his heart. Actually, she very well could be the youngest. No one was sure exactly how old she was as she flat out refused to ever discuss the topic. Ziva recalled once telling Tony that, _"She will always be the favorite."_ Tony, the narcissistic tool who Gibbs just had to love for some strange reason no one could quite figure out. He was a good agent, fiercely loyal and great for making you laugh when you needed it. McGee, the nerdy prodigal son who never got out enough. And then her. Ziva, the trained assassin. She killed people without feeling a thing and yet she was sitting in a room with her surrogate father telling her it was okay to cry. A lot of time had passed since she cried on Gibbs's shoulder about killing her brother. It had worked to get Gibbs's memory back, but it was still a long time ago. That and the time she called Gibbs and asked him to save her and he flew 3,000 miles back to DC to do so while she hid in his basement. A very long time ago, but it had formed a bond that could never be broken.

She reached into her pocket and took out two folded up photographs – the one of her and Abby looking at each other across the bullpen and the other, the half burned picture of Abby on their anniversary. She unfolded them and handed them over to Gibbs.

"He found out."

Ziva nodded. "He found out."

"How much longer are you here for?"

"He's allowing me to stay." Gibbs raised his eyebrows in question. "He knows how much it will hurt me to have to see Abby everyday but not even be able to touch her or talk to her. It is much more of a punishment than sending me somewhere else. For both of us."

"How much longer do you have with her?"

"Four days."

Gibbs sighed handed Ziva the photos back, leaning back in his chair. "What are you going to do?"

"I don't know." Ziva looked up at him, fresh tears spilling down her cheeks. "I don't want to do this. I do not want to have to break Abby's heart, I do not want to live without her . . . But what I really do not want is for her to have to die because of _me_." She sighed. "I don't know if it would be easier for her if I told her now or if I waited until the four days were up and just left, or if I waited and told her before I left, or . . ." She trailed off, hanging her head. "I don't know what is best for her."

"What about what's best for you?"

Ziva looked up in disbelief. "What is best for me?"

Gibbs nodded. "Everyone deserves to be happy Ziva."

"Even me?"

"Especially you."

"Abby cannot lose another person Gibbs. Kate, the Director...She lost you for a while and she lost Tony and myself for a few months when the Director disbanded the team…She has lost too much already." Ziva looked away. "This is all my fault."

Gibbs reached over and took Ziva's hands, making sure she was looking at him before he spoke. "None of this is your fault."

Ziva nodded. More to placate Gibbs than anything else.

"We could make your position here permanent." Ziva looked at him. "Eliminate the liaison officer position and make you an official NCIS special agent."

Ziva smiled sadly. "I appreciate that, but it would not make any difference. I will still be his daughter."

Gibbs put a comforting hand on Ziva's shoulder. She was right. Nothing either of them or anyone else could do would change who her DNA told her she was. And because of that she was losing the one true shot at love she had. Gibbs trusted his gut and his gut was telling him that Ziva and Abby were made for each other. It had told him that from the minute the pair were introduced and Abby made her displeasure with the newest member of the team extensively known. A façade Gibbs saw right through.


	3. Showtime

Day 1 - Afternoonish  
Just a funny little chapter. Just because Ziva has to end things doesn't mean there can't be a bit of fun.

A/N: I was so impressed with the NCIS episode tonight that I decided to post a little early. Enjoy!

VillageVoice

* * *

She loved watching Abby. She was ridiculously tall and her platform boots only added to her already towering height, but she moved with a grace Ziva had never seen before. Everything was fluid; the way she strode across her lab from one machine to another, the way she held a piece of evidence up to the light, the way she jumped up and down when she found something she knew Gibbs would appreciate. Every way the woman moved. Ziva licked her lips as her eyes traveled down and watched the sway of Abby's hips. She knew exactly what those hips could do.

She pushed off the doorframe and silently walked over to Abby. The Goth's back to Ziva and her total dedication to her work making Ziva even more unnoticeable. Abby looked to the side, checking something and Ziva stood still. Any sudden movement would alert Abby to her presence. After a few seconds Abby turned back to the computer and Ziva closed the distance between them as she pressed herself up against Abby's back. She felt the taller woman melt against her.

Abby smiled and leaned back against Ziva. "I thought I had three hours?"

"You do." Ziva smiled and planted a kiss on that spot on Abby's neck right next to her pulse point, moving down to gently suck on one of the lines of Abby's spider web tattoo. "I'm just here to give you some . . . motivation, yes?"

Abby brought her hands up off of the keyboard. "I have been properly motivated." She turned around and raised her arms up to put around Ziva's neck, but stopped when she saw the redness in Ziva's eyes choosing instead to bring her hands to Ziva's face. "You going to tell me what's bothering you now?"

Ziva smiled. Crying twice in the span of less than twenty-four hours was not something she normally did. Of course Abby would know something was wrong. And she loved the forensic scientist all the more for it. But she also knew that Abby wouldn't push her to explain. She would wait as long as it took for Ziva to tell her. Ziva opened her mouth to speak-

"Abby."

Abby looked around Ziva and smiled at Gibbs, but it didn't reach her eyes as her smiled usually did. "Gibbs." She loved Gibbs, but she was beginning to get really worried about Ziva. "What can I do for you?"

"Go home. I don't want to see either of you back here until Wednesday."

Abby furrowed her brow in confusion. "That's four days Gibbs."

"I know." Gibbs nodded, taking a stance that said he was not negotiating.

Abby turned back to Ziva and crossed her arms over her chest. "One of you _is_ going to tell me what's going on."

Ziva turned to Gibbs and nodded. When she heard the elevator close behind her silver-haired boss she turned to Abby and gently placed her hands on the Goth's upper arms "I am afraid of what I have to tell you."

All of the color drained from Abby's face. This sounded exactly like the beginning of a break-up speech. Even Ziva's sweet smile and hands gently stroking her arms did little to quash her fears. She brought her hands down and held them around herself.

"But I will tell you." Ziva cupped Abby's face in her hands and brought her in for a kiss, kissing away all fears and doubts about what Ziva really wanted. She pulled away and ran her thumb over the edge of Abby's lower lip, tracing the outline of her mouth. "I love you."

Abby smiled and wrapped her arms around Ziva's neck, leaning her forehead against Ziva's. "I love you too."

"Do you want to go tell everyone now?"

Abby's eyes sparkled. "Really?"

Ziva smiled. "Really."

A devilish smile came over Abby's face. Ziva raised an eyebrow. She was up for whatever the raven-haired beauty before her was plotting

* * *

Ziva walked - rather strolled very chilled-out like, into the NCIS squadroom with a dangerous smile painted on her face. She walked over to her desk and sat down at her chair, her hands clasped behind her head as she leaned back in her usual style. A few minutes passed and no one looked up; not nosey DiNozzey, not even McGee who usually greeted her with at least a nod when she came into the room. Nothing. She snuck a glance over to the elevator where Abby was hiding behind the wall and smiled at the scientist's impatience. She turned back around and ran her hands up her neck, bringing her hair up and holding it on top of her head.

"Ziva David!"

Ziva looked over at Tony. "Anthony DiNozzo." He remained blankly staring at her and she shrugged. "We are not making introductions?" Tony looked away for a split second and Ziva bit her lower lip to keep from smiling. Tony looked back and she shrugged again. "Is something the matter Tony?"

Tony opened his mouth several times, but nothing came out.

"Feline got your tongue?"

"Cat." McGee corrected.

"Is a cat not a feline?" Ziva asked.

McGee looked up. "Well yes." He glanced over at Tony. "Tony?" He turned back to Ziva in question.

Ziva shrugged and swiveled her chair, giving McGee an 'accidental' glance at what had rendered Tony speechless. She turned back and found McGee in a similar state as Tony. "Am I missing something?"

That was when Gibbs decided to join his team. He paused briefly at Ziva's desk and saw what was going on. He brought his coffee to his lips and shook his head with a laugh, turning back around and going right back wherever he had just come from. He would come back in a few minutes and make sure she and Abby were gone once they finished their little show.

"Hey Zi." Abby greeted, deciding it was a good time to join the group now. She looked around quickly before bringing her gaze back to Ziva with question in her eyes. "What's up with them?" She could be a pretty convincing actress when she wanted to be.

Ziva sighed and let her hair down, crossing her arms over her chest. Mossad had made her quite the actress as well. "I don't know."

Abby held in a laugh as she looked over Tony and McGee one last time before turning her attention back to Ziva. She ran her eyes up and down Ziva's body, taking considerable time to admire her chest which was being gently pushed up by her arms resting just below. She licked her bottom lip and took a deep breath.

Ziva looked up and smiled. She pulled herself back over to her desk, resting her elbows on the cool surface and using her finger to beckon Abby closer. She licked her lip and cast a quick glance at the guys before bringing her lips to Abby's ear. "It is working."

Abby bent down closer to Ziva and cupped her hand around Ziva's ear so only she could hear. "It's working on me too." She pulled away and cast a stealthy glance at Tony and McGee who were now leaning practically drooling over their desks. She smoothed out her plaid skirt and walked around to the other side of Ziva's desk, pushing the Israeli far enough away from the desk so that she could sit on her lap. Tracing the outline of Ziva's bottom lip she rested her hand on the side of the darker woman's face, gently drawing her thumb over the smooth skin. Slowly she leaned in and captured Ziva's lips in a passionate kiss.

They ignored the fact that Tony and his chair went crashing to the floor somewhere during their kiss and addresses it only when they pulled away. "Are you okay there Tony?" Ziva asked.

Tony jumped up off the floor and tried to appear as cool as he could. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm great. You guys?"

Abby smiled and wrapped an arm around Ziva's neck. "Great."

Tony picked up his chair and sat back down. "Great. . . McGee?"

McGee blinked a few times and cleared his throat. "Great."

Ziva hid behind Abby and tried as hard as she could not to laugh. "Great."

"Glad we got that settled." Abby turned back to Ziva. "You ready to go home?"

"Actually," Ziva placed her hands on Abby's hips to help her stand up. "I need to go back to my apartment first."

"Why?"

Ziva stood up and grabbed her bag. "I need to pick up a few things."

Abby put her hand out and stopped Ziva. "Like what?" Ziva didn't answer. "You're lying."

"I am not." Ziva looked to McGee and Tony for some sort of help, but they were still too shocked to form words.

"Yes you are. Rule number seven Ziva, always be specific when you lie."

"I just need to grab a few things and I will be right there."

"When is the last time you spent a night at your place?"

Tony's eyes grew bigger. "I knew it!" He exclaimed. "McGee, how many times did I tell you that . . . well, that . . . I . . . I knew something was going on. I said so. Several times."

McGee scoffed. "Tony you think something is going on with every attractive woman who isn't interested in you."

"Now you see why."

Ziva ignored their banter and tried to think back to the last time she had spent a night at her own apartment, but she couldn't remember. She brought her hand to Abby's cheek. "I promise. I will be right there."

Abby's eyes quickly darted around the room, a reflex from all the times she had wanted to reach out and touch Ziva but had to make sure they were alone first. Something she never had to worry about again. She covered Ziva's hand with her own and leaned into the touch. "Do you trust me?"

Ziva brought her other hand to Abby's face and pulled her in until their lips met. She pulled back and looked deep into Abby's eyes. "With my life."

Abby slowly nodded and a smile broke out over her face, butterflies fluttering low in her stomach. "Okay." She could always tell when the big, bad Mossad officer was lying and she saw nothing but absolute truth in her dark eyes.

Ziva kissed her again. "I love you."

Abby's smile grew even bigger. "I love you too."

Ziva nodded her head toward the elevator. "Let's go home."

Abby nodded, her pigtails bouncing up and down as she brought Ziva's hands from her face, keeping one intertwined with one of her own. "Bye boys." She called over her shoulder as she and Ziva walked over to the elevator.

"Have fun you two." Gibbs waved over as they stepped onto the elevator.

"Boss, you knew?"

Gibbs sat down at his desk and looked over at Tony. "You didn't?" Tony didn't answer. "You mean to tell me that my _senior_ field agent had no idea what had been going on right under his nose for the past year, DiNozzo?"

"A year?" McGee asked.

"Yes McGee."

"A whole year?" Tony asked. "As in twelve months? 52 weeks? 356 days Boss?

"There are 365 days in a year DiNozzo." Gibbs corrected and turned back to his computer. "That's a serious lapse in your investigative skills."

"I don't investigate my co-workers Boss."

"Got your eyes checked lately DiNozzo?" Tony sat down and promptly shut his mouth while Gibbs tried his hardest to keep a straight face. McGee just flat out laughed.

Abby and Ziva waited until they were safely away from their co-workers and out of the building before erupting into a fit of laughter. Once they had calmed down Abby ran her hand over Ziva's neck and checked out her handiwork; two perfectly round and perfectly noticeable purplish-red marks showing up nicely against the olive tone of her skin. Abby smiled and ran a finger over the marks. "Not my best work, but the best I could do in such a short amount of time."

Ziva raised an eyebrow. "We have four days…"

Abby smiled. "Now that I can do some serious damage with."


	4. Branded

Day 2 - Morning  
Also toward the end I am not saying that Abby had romantic feelings for Kate or Jenny, just that she never got to tell them how much they meant to her, purely platonically. Ooh, and I brought along Kat von D from LA Ink because I think she is a phenomenal tattoo artist and I think her and Abby could be really great friends. Also, _italics_ are flashbacks.  
A/N: Sorry I didn't post on my normal day, but I have been sick and heavily medicated for most of this week, but I'm better now, so I figured I would post. This is also the shortest chapter I have so far and I'm up to chapter 20 now, so if you like shorter chapters, then enjoy. If not, it's only 1 chapter

VillageVoice

* * *

"_Officer David, the liaison position with NCIS is being terminated. You're going home."_

"Abby!" Ziva shot up in bed, a cold sweat broken out all over her body.

"Shh…" Abby pulled Ziva into her arms and smoothed away her damp hair. "I'm here. I'm here. It's okay. It was just a dream." She gently rocked Ziva back and forth in her arms. "It was just a dream."

Ziva closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. It was just a dream. But the reality wasn't all that much better.

"You need a tattoo."

It took Ziva a minute to switch gears. It was sometimes hard to follow Abby's trains of thought. Waking up from a nightmare in the middle of a deep sleep was not the best time to step on the Sciuto train. "Excuse me?"

"You need a tattoo." The Goth restated. It was something she had been thinking about, and now seemed like a good enough time to bring it up. Ziva needed to be distracted and Abby was the queen of distractions. "I'm thinking something like, 'Abby' . . . or maybe just an 'A.'"

Ziva smiled. She knew exactly what Abby was doing and she was grateful. "You know the minute someone gets a tattoo of their partner's name or initials the relationship usually goes bitter."

"Sour." Abby corrected.

"Whatever, same difference." Ziva yawned. "The point is the minute someone . . . brands themselves with their partner's name the relationship typically ends."

Abby released Ziva from her arms and propped herself up on her arm to look at Ziva. "What part of our relationship is in any way, shape _or_ form typical?"

Ziva mirrored Abby and propped herself up on her own arm. "I see your point. But I cannot be buried in a Jewish cemetery if I have a tattoo."

Abby shrugged. "Oh." She laid back down. "It was just an idea."

Reverse psychology, Ziva smirked. But the idea of having a part of Abby always with her was appealing. Her father was making them break-up, but she doubted that he would go so far as to have her surgically remove a tattoo. Especially if he couldn't see it.

"We could always get a puppy?"

Ziva laughed. "Oh yes, your neighbor would just love that."

"Hey, don't try to blame me on that fact that you're a screamer. That is all your doing."

Ziva smirked. "I cannot very well make myself scream now can I, Abby?"

Abby looked over at Ziva and smiled that devilish smile she had perfected over the years. "Well . . ." She turned over and raked her eyes over Ziva's body. "Okay, that part may be my fault."

"_May_ be your fault?" Ziva questioned.

"Okay, so it's definitely my fault." Abby placed her hand on Ziva's hip, drawing slow, smooth circles until Ziva's eyes began to darken and then suddenly pulled Ziva's body to hers. "I think the good Mrs. Forrester is home now. . . How long do you think it will take her to come knocking this time?"

Ziva captured Abby's lips with her own. "Not long."

* * *

"Abigail Sciuto I cannot believe I let you talk me into this. What person in their correct mind would willingly let someone inflict this sort of pain upon themselves?"

The young, heavily tattooed apparently, _'best chick in the world'_ according to Abby, pulled the instrument of said pain away from Ziva's hip. "You want me to stop?"

"No." Abby said quickly. "No, you're almost done." She took the seat beside Ziva and grabbed her hand, nodding to the dark haired woman to continue.

"I had no idea this would hurt as much as it does. You have many, many tattoos. Why would you do this more than once?"

Abby brought Ziva's hand to her face and kissed her palm. "I love you so much for doing this."

"I would rather have hoped you loved me before this."

"Oh I did, I do, I-" She smirked and leaned closer to Ziva until their lips touched. "Sarcasm. You're getting better."

"I try." Ziva winced. "But in the meantime it feels like my hip is on fire."

"It's your lower abdomen and it's not on fire."

"It feels like there are a bunch of little needles are being shot into it then."

"Well that part is true, but you've been through much worse . . . right?"

Ziva glared at her. "Not willingly."

"Right, of course." She smiled sweetly. "Sorry."

Ziva untangled her hand from Abby's and brought it to the older woman's cheek. "You will be making this up to me later."

"Of course." Abby winked.

"You could make it up to her now . . ." Abby and Ziva both turned and glared at the tattoo artist. "If you'd like."

"Kat, that is so not going to happen." She and Ziva laughed as Kat went back to finishing Ziva's tattoo.

Fifteen minutes later it was done. "Kat, thanks so much for flying in to do this. I feel bad about dragging you away from LA for something so small, but" She smiled over at Ziva. "I wasn't about to let anyone else touch her. Only the best."

Kat smiled and brought Abby in for a hug. "Hey, no problem man. I always told you, I'm just a phone call away. We should get together sometime this weekend. I haven't been partying in DC in ages."

"Totally. I'll call you."

Abby lead Ziva over to the mirror and jumped up and down. "Ziva, it's gorgeous."

Ziva lowered her jeans further to admire the tattoo in the mirror. It was really pretty. It was only about five or six inches, but it was beautiful even to Ziva who didn't think tattoos were really anything to get overly excited over. She loved Abby's, but that was more who they were on than what they were actually of. She smiled over at Abby and looked down at the new tattoo. It was a single black rose, classic black and white design with a short stem and a minuscule crimson spider hanging from a thin thread of crimson silk from one of the petals. Ziva had no idea that such exquisite detail could be drawn on something so small. "Now I will always remember you."

Abby came up behind Ziva and wrapped her arms around Ziva's waist, resting her head on the Israeli's shoulder. "It's going to be hard to forget me seeing as I'm right here. But it is beautiful. I've never had someone get a tattoo for me before."

"I would do anything for you." She turned her head and captured Abby's lips, planting a feather light kiss on the taller woman's lips. Their angle blocking out a certain tattoo artist's view.

Abby fell even more in love with Ziva at that moment. It was an incredibly cheesy thing to say, but she knew such things weren't easy for the Mossad officer. "Kat look away."

Kat looked up from her instruments that she had been cleaning, not even paying attention to Abby or Ziva. She had known Abby a long time and was happy she had finally found someone who made her so happy. She didn't want to intrude on that. "Why?"

"So I can kiss my girlfriend Kat." She looked over her shoulder as Kat grabbed her tools and went off to the back room to pack everything up Abby and kissed Ziva properly. "Your very own black rose."

Ziva smiled and looked up at Abby. "My very own black rose."

"You remember when we first got together?"

"Before or after I actually believed you when you told me you had feelings for me?" Abby chuckled and snuggled into Ziva's open arms. But her laughter quickly ended. Ziva wrapped her arms tighter around Abby and sighed. "You'd lost Kate, Jenny had just been killed . . . I thought . . . I thought you were displacing your loss. That you were holding on to me because you couldn't lose another person; you couldn't lose another friend."

Abby pulled Ziva in tighter. "Everybody . . . died. Every close female friend I ever had at NCIS were killed – shot and killed. When Ducky got off the phone with Gibbs…"

_Ducky flipped his phone shut and slowly turned to Abby and McGee._

_"Who?" McGee asked._

_Ducky took a deep breath. "Jenny."_

"I liked Jenny. She was a great director, she was a good friend . . . But I wasn't really that close to her. And I was so mad at you and Tony. You were there to protect her and you failed…" She reached up to wipe a tear from her cheek. "I just couldn't lose another person. Especially not you. I hated you when you first joined NCIS because you took Kate's spot and Kate was my best friend. But it was also because I didn't hate you. I liked you. I liked you, liked you, but I didn't want to like you, like you because I couldn't let myself get close to another person who was going to leave me."

Ziva quickly wiped her own tears with the back of her hand before wrapping her arms tighter around Abby.

"But you tried. You were nice to me and invited me to your place for dinner and you really tried to be my friend. So we became friends and I just kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. Then Jenny died and Vance was sending you back to Israel. It was worse than losing you because I knew you were still living, you were still breathing, you were still existing in the same world I was. I started thinking about all the things I never said to the Director, all the things I would never get the chance to tell her, to tell Kate . . . and I had to tell you. I had to tell you how much…"

_Everyone went home. Tony, McGee and even Gibbs. Gibbs undoubtedly to hide out in his basement for the next few days working on his boat trying to think of some way to not lose his entire team. Tony to pack as he shipped out in only a few hours, and McGee . . . he was actually just switching departments so he probably went home to sleep. But not Ziva. She stepped into the elevator and got off on Abby's floor. McGee has called her once they left Vance's office and told her about his and Tony's reassignments, but Ziva wanted to be the one to tell Abby what Vance was doing with her._

_She was immediately aware of the fact that there was no music playing. She walked into the unusually dark lab and saw Abby sitting at the desk in her office just staring blankly at the screen in front of her. Ziva could see the reflection of the screen's image on the glass frame of Abby's evidence picture hanging on the wall behind her. It had been taken a few weeks prior. It was of all of them; Abby, Ziva, Gibbs, Jenny, Tony, McGee, Ducky, and Palmer. They were at some NCIS event that no one really knew exactly what the point was, but it was an evening void of all work and there was plenty of alcohol. So they all decided to spend the evening getting really, really drunk. _

_Ziva took a step deeper into Abby's lab and Abby's head shot up, her eyes locking on Ziva's. She was out of her office and had Ziva locked into a tight hug before Ziva even had the chance to blink. After a few minutes of oxygen deprivation Abby loosened her grip. "Where are you going?" Her tone and the fact that she wouldn't let Ziva go told the Israeli Abby already knew._

_Ziva took a minute and wrapped her arms around Abby. She felt a sob escape Abby's lips at the contact. It took something really big to make Ziva hug her back. "Israel." She stated. "My position here with NCIS is terminated effective immediately."_

_Abby shook her head. "No."_

_"I'll let you take a really good picture to make into another mop-Ziva if you would like."_

_Abby shook her head again, not even being able to laugh at Ziva's attempt at a joke. "I want the real Ziva." She pulled away and looked deep into Ziva's eyes. "I want you."_

_Ziva smiled sadly. "I am so sorry Abby. I would much rather stay here with all of you. You all are my family now, not-"_

_"No, I mean I want you." Ziva wasn't quite getting it. "I have lost Kate and Jenny. They were taken from me before I had the chance to tell them how much they meant to me." She reached up and brushed a tear off of Ziva's cheek. "I am not going to make that mistake a third time."_

Ziva pulled away and tilted Abby's chin until their eyes met. She gently brushed the tears from Abby's cheeks.

"I really love you Ziva."

_'If only it were that simple.'_ Ziva nodded and wiped another tear from Abby's face. "I know." This conversation was encroaching on a dangerous subject and until Ziva knew what she was going to tell Abby, she wanted to stay far away from it. She was lying to Abby enough as it was.


	5. Midnight Games

Still Day 2 - Nighttime, turns into Day 3  
Just want to say that Ziva's middle name is pronounced with a long "I" not the "ee" sound. It will make more sense later on in the chapter. Also, '_Ima_' is the Hebrew translation of mother. Again, will make sense in the chapter.

A/N: I decided to post a little early because NCIS is a repeat tonight. I've been having a little trouble getting my Muse around lately, but she does like reviews so maybe ya'll can entice her back.

VillageVoice

* * *

"We're not really going to spend the next two days lying in bed are we?" Abby pleaded, wearing the saddest, most irresistible pouty face she could manage.

Ziva chuckled and looked out the window. The full moon was rising its way up the star-studded sky. "It is nearly midnight, Abby."

"And your point?"

"I suppose that . . ." Ziva looked back at Abby. A little darkness would only encourage her mistress of the dark. "I do not have one."

Abby smiled, drawing her index finger over Ziva's jawbone, down to her chin, ending by tracing the outline of her mouth. "Not that I don't love staying in bed with you for hours - that thing you do with your…" She wiggled her eyebrows. "…is the stuff of legends and if I didn't have you right here they would keep my fantasies going for months, years even, but-"

"You know for someone who loves being underground in a lab all day, you are surprisingly uncomfortable being bound within the limits of walls." Ziva interrupted.

"I get bored sitting around here all day."

"I do not recall being here all day and I especially do not recall sitting." Ziva joked. "What do you have in mind?"

"We," Abby sat up for added effect. "Should go to a club."

Ziva raised an eyebrow. "A club?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

Abby wasn't expecting that. She closed her mouth and did a double take on Ziva. "Why?"

"Yes. Why?"

"Why not?" Abby never recalled having a reason for going to a club – with the exception of when she, Ziva and Agent Lee went undercover as Thom E. Gemcity's hookers to get into a club, but that was for a case so it didn't count.

"I do not know that is why I asked you. You claim to not be happy staying within the four walls of this room and yet you want to a club where you will be bound within another set of walls. It does not make sense to me."

Abby pouted. "You look too deep into the English language. Sometimes it's not meant to be so literal."

Ziva pulled Abby over and wrapped her arms around her. Taking time to use the fact that Abby's hair was down to her advantage as she nuzzled her nose within the dark locks. "I am sorry. We will do anything you want to do."

"Anything?"

"Yes. . . But no puppy."

"Aw come on Zi. They're so cute." She looked up at Ziva, batting her eyelashes.

Ziva looked deep into Abby's eyes. If she looked deep enough she could see right through the cuteness. Eyes really were the windows to the soul. "No. When do we have time for a puppy Abby? We are at work all day, sometimes for several days at a time. It is not fair to leave a small animal alone for that long."

"I could bring her to work. I'll say she's in training to be a detection dog or something and what better way to train her than raising her around the very things she will be detecting?" Ziva shook her head. "We could actually train her. She could sniff for drugs or explosives or guns or bodies…" She trained off seeing Ziva staring blankly at her. "She could be a police dog? When Gibbs doesn't work one look at her and confessions will come pouring out of even the most..." She sighed and relaxed into Ziva's embrace, laying her hands over Ziva's and lacing their fingers together. "I guess you're right."

Ziva nodded and tightened her arms around the taller woman, placing a kiss on her cheek. "So, what are we going to do?"

Abby swung her leg over Ziva so that she was straddling the Israeli. "Suddenly," She began. "I'm not so interested in going out anymore."

"No?" Ziva laughed as she pulled Abby's hands from her face. "But now I am."

* * *

"You know, I'm thinking that this probably isn't one of the best ideas I've ever had." Abby said as she looked around the nearly pitch-black park.

Ziva picked a flower out of the ground and tucked it behind Abby's ear. "It is actually pretty romantic." She said, lying back against the blanket they had laid out on the damp grass.

"Really?"

"Yes." Ziva smiled up at Abby, pulling the Goth woman down with her. "It is dark, yes?"

Abby nodded and wrapped her arm around Ziva, snuggling into her embrace.

"It is quiet, yes?"

Abby nodded. "Except for the crickets."

Ziva listened for a minute. "They add something . . ."

"Special?" Abby offered.

"Magical." Ziva looked down at Abby and they shared a loving smile. "It is perfect."

Abby leaned up and placed a soft, loving kiss on Ziva's lips before snuggling back down. She saw something flickering above them just under the tree branches. "Fireflies."

"Firebugs?"

Abby pointed above them to a bunch of flickering lights. "Fireflies."

Ziva looked up and her dark eyes grew as she watched these little bugs play. She had never seen anything like them. Little flashes of light there one minute and gone the next. It was amazing. She was sure there was some complicated process that went on for the tiny bugs to create such sights and Abby would more than likely explain it to her in great detail if she asked, but laying there watching them flicker on and off with Abby was enough.

"Okay we're going to play a game." Abby stated, breaking the silence.

"I want to watch the firebugs."

"They're called fireflies."

"I like firebugs better."

Abby chuckled. "You can still watch the _firebugs_."

Ziva looked down at Abby for a second before turning back to the flickering bugs. "Fine I will play your game."

Abby smiled and placed a kiss on Ziva's cheek. "Okay, so I ask you a question and you answer and then you can ask me a question and I answer."

"That is not a game. It is an interrogation." Abby feigned hurt and punched Ziva's arm. She tried to sit up, but Ziva tightened her arms around the Goth and refused to let her. "I will play your interrogation game."

Abby settled back down and snuggled close up against Ziva. It was getting colder by the minute. "It's not an interrogation game." She protested. "And to show you that it's not I will let you ask the first question."

"What kind of question?"

"Anything you can think of. But no lying. I know your crazy, super ninja spy Mossad training made it so that you can pass a polygraph without an ounce of effort, but I am the human polygraph. Nothing gets past me."

Ziva paused to think for a minute. She had to make the question a good one because Abby generally shared all the important details of her life with her anyway. But she also had to make it innocent enough so that if Abby turned the question back to her she could actually answer it without putting the Goth in danger or having to lie to her. Despite the amazing lie-detecting skills Abby claimed to have, Ziva could make anyone believe anything that came out of her mouth. Mossad training, both a blessing and a curse. "What is your middle name?"

Abby rolled her eyes. "Is that seriously your question?" She looked up to see Ziva looking at her expectantly. "You're a boring question asker." She sighed. "Brooke."

"Abigail Brooke Sciuto." Ziva said, drawing the words out and seeing how it felt to know one more piece of the puzzle that was Abby Sciuto-Abigail Brooke Sciuto. "Your initials are your nickname, yes?"

"Some people lack creativity." Abby nodded. "What's your middle name?"

Ziva resisted saying how much creativity was lacked by simply mirroring her own question, but she was rather hoping that was what Abby would do so she restrained herself. "Aniah."

"Aniah." Abby repeated. "That's pretty. Is it Hebrew?" Abby asked, propping herself on her elbow so she could watch Ziva as they talked, still keeping her other arm draped over the Israeli's toned stomach.

"It is . . . sort of. It is based off of Anah, but it is a tradition in our family to have each one of our names have an 'i' in it, so my parents changed it. It means 'answer' in Hebrew."

Abby smirked. "Does that mean you have all the answers?"

"No." Ziva shook her head. "Now it is my turn to ask another question, yes?"

"Yes."

"What is it with you and puppies?"

Abby laughed.

"I do not understand."

"What is there to understand Zi? They're cute, they're cuddly, they're there for you unconditionally, they love you unconditionally. They don't judge you and they don't care what you do for a living or how much money you make. They never want anything from you, they don't demand anything and if anyone gets near you they'll rip their throats out. All they know is when you have a bad day, if they stay by your side as you eat pint after pint of Ben and Jerry's . . . that you'll be okay."

"What is a 'Ben and Jerry'?"

"It's not your turn." Abby chuckled. "The only guys a girl can trust, aside from Gibbs. I'll introduce you later."

Ziva nodded and wrapped her arms tighter around Abby as she felt the older woman shiver. It was getting cold, but neither woman had any desire to be anywhere else. She momentarily pulled away from Abby to grab the blanket they had set off to the side. Once it was spread out over them she looked down at Abby. She was so beautiful. She was beautiful all the time, but there was something glowy about her at night. The darkness lit up her eyes. She was totally in her element.

Abby smiled and opened her arms to Ziva. "Lay back down."

Ziva smiled and nestled into Abby's arms. "Your turn now, yes?" She asked as she fixed the blanket over their shoulders.

"Okay, my question is . . ." She thought for a minute. "Have you ever thought about having kids?"

Ziva sighed. "Thought about, yes."

"Do you want kids?"

"That is two questions."

"My game." Abby shrugged. "Sue me."

"I have always wanted to have a child, but a part of me knows better. It is complicated."

Abby reached over and started twirling a curl of Ziva's hair with her fingers. "We've got time."

Ziva took a deep breath. "I used to have this dream when I was younger, while I was in Mossad. I would shoot this shadow from a distance and when I got close enough to see the shadow is it is a little girl. She's two or three years old with these bright eyes and soft dark curls and she always had this little stuffed lamb in her hands. When I get to her she is bleeding out from the shot I put in the center of her forehead. She looks up with tears in her eyes, hands me the lamb and says, 'Ima, why?'" Ziva shook her head. "Not why did I shoot, but why did I bring her into this mess."

"What mess?"

"My life."

Abby planted a kiss on the top of Ziva's head and tightened her arms around her. "I think you'd make a great Mom."

Ziva smiled sadly. "We will never know." Neither knew what to say after that so they just laid there together and watched the bug show overhead. Ziva heard something to her left, but relaxed when she saw it was only a pair of frisky squirrels. "My question." She thought for a minute and a smile spread across her face. "How old are you?"

Abby blushed and looked away. Probably one of the world's best kept secrets was her age and she liked it that way. "Older than you." She replied in a whisper. She even hacked into the NCIS database and erased the year she was born from her record.

"That is not answering the question."

Abby pulled the blankets up over her face and hid.

"You made the rules Abby. I believe one of the rules is 'no lying.'"

Abby sighed and pulled the blankets down away from her face. "Fine, but you cannot tell anyone, and I mean _anyone_." Ziva put her hand over her heart and nodded. The forensic scientist looked around into the darkness to make sure no one was around before answering. She cupped her hand around Ziva's ear and whispered the secret age into her ear so low Ziva almost didn't hear her.

Ziva switched their positions and wrapped her arms around Abby. "You look good for your age."

Abby groaned. "I will skip my next question as long as this conversation can be over."

Ziva chuckled and planted a loving kiss on Abby's temple. "Okay my turn then, yes?"

"No."

"No? But you said-"

"No. You ask boring questions. My turn. Your family?" She felt Ziva tense within her arms. "Ziva you can tell me anything." She ran her fingers lightly back and forth over Ziva's arm until she felt the muscles relax. "I promise."

Ziva looked up at Abby for a long while before finally answering. She never told Abby about Ari. Gibbs was the only one who knew they were related. He was her brother and she killed him. She had to carry that around with her, but she had no idea how Abby would feel about her connection to Ari. Ari killed Kate. Kate and Abby were best friends. It could go one of two ways. One, Abby would bolt. She would want to get as far away from Ziva as fast as she could. Two, it didn't bother her nearly as much as Ziva thought it would and she'd get over it in a minute or so. Ari killed Kate and Ari was Ziva's brother. She almost hoped it was the first case. It would eliminate her having to break Abby's heart. She would rather Abby hate her than to have to see a single tear slide down her pale cheek.

Abby brought her hand to Ziva's cheek and gently turned her face so she could look into her eyes, breaking when she saw redness creeping into Ziva's chocolate orbs. She pulled the Israeli in for a kiss. "Nothing you can tell me will make me love you any less."

Ziva scoffed. "You do not know what I know."

"But I want to."

Ziva smiled at Abby and nodded. She would do anything to make Abby smile. "My father is Director of Mossad. He was Deputy Director for most of my childhood and was promoted while I was here with NCIS and is not letting me forget that I was not there to see him promoted. My mother was killed when I was fifteen. I was considered an adult then, but my Aunt Nettie came to live with us to help raise my little sister, Tali. I told her that I would raise Tali myself, but she wanted me to have a childhood." Ziva laughed sadly. "She was not happy when I joined Mossad. But she knew that it was my decision."

"I've never heard you talk about a sister."

"She was four years younger than I. She died in a Hamas suicide bombing when she was sixteen."

"Oh Ziva."

"We were very close. I never trusted many people, so Tali was my best friend. Her death made me a great assassin my father said. It hardened me." She brought a hand to the pendant hanging from her neck. "This was her necklace."

"I can imagine. Ziva I am so sorry."

"Do not let Gibbs hear you apologizing."

Abby laughed. "Gibbs would never do anything to me."

"Favorite, yes?"

"Once the favorite, always the favorite. Now finish your answer."

"How do you know I was not finished?"

Abby raised an eyebrow. "Because I know you Ziva David."

Ziva took a deep breath and forged ahead. "I had an older brother – half-brother. He was born before my parents were married." She corrected. "I was his control officer in Mossad and I followed him here. To Gibbs and . . . to Gibbs's basement." She looked straight ahead, not being able to handle the look in Abby's eyes. "I shot him just seconds before he would have pulled the trigger on Gibbs. Officially Gibbs fired the shot."

"Ar . . ." Abby felt all the air leave her body. "Ari Haswari was . . . your brother?"

Ziva nodded. "Yes." Abby didn't pull away, she didn't look away, she didn't speak. Ziva lied still, not knowing what she should do. "Abby? . . Abby are you ..?"

"Give me a minute." Ziva nodded and turned to move away, but Abby stopped her. "That doesn't mean that I don't still want you here."

"But, Ari was-"

"Your half-brother. You killed your own brother to save a man you barely knew. That alone proves that you are nothing like him Ziva."

"I am sorry that I did not stop him before he killed Kate. I know she was very important to you."

Abby nodded. "She was my best friend and I will miss her every day of my life . . . but I believe there is a reason for everything, I have to believe that there was a reason for her death." She reached down and laced her fingers with Ziva's. "She brought you to me. She always wanted me to be happy. Now I am."

Ziva smiled. Her father would pay for this. Never before had she hated him so much. She would make sure he paid. She might die doing it, but he would pay.

"Ah Ziva?"

Ziva shook herself out of her reverie. "Yes?"

"It's getting a little chilly out."

"Chilly?"

"Cold."

"Why did you not just say 'cold'?"

Abby rolled her eyes and sat up. "How about when I say, 'let's go home so I can ravish every inch of your body and make you feel like a goddess.'" She purred. "What do you say about that Officer David?"

Ziva smiled and turned over so that she was straddling her Mistress of the Dark. "I say . . . why wait."

Abby brought her lips up to Ziva's ear. "I like your style, David."


	6. Paris

Day 3 - Early Morning

I really love this chapter. I'm highly biased, but I think it's beautiful. Sad, but beautiful. lol. Hope ya'll like it as mch as I do.

VillageVoice

* * *

Ziva shot up in bed. Something wasn't right, she could feel it. It was enough of a feeling to wake her from sleep, yet not obvious enough to wake Abby. She slipped out of bed without so much as wrinkling a sheet and crept over to the window, peeking out through the tiny space between the window shade and the wall that allowed a tiny sliver of early morning light to shine in. She slipped out of the room a second later. The door was already shut when she remembered that her gun was under her pillow. She wasn't going to risk disturbing Abby and losing whoever was watching them. She had another one hidden in the living room and she had a few of her knives hidden among the cutlery in the kitchen as well as a few under the coffee table in the living room and one behind the mirror by the door. Despite working with weapons on a daily basis Abby didn't especially like having them in the house. She understood Ziva's service weapon, but that was as far as she budging on the issue. So Ziva kept them well hidden.

She avoided the noisy floorboards and stayed low she made her way to the center of the living room and ripped her gun out from its holster strapped firmly underneath the couch. She has spotted one, but it was still mostly dark outside so she had no idea how many people were actually watching the apartment. She threw on her shoes, tied her hair up, grabbed the knife from behind the mirror and locked the front door behind herself as she dashed down the hall and down the back stairs. Once out of the building she hugged the wall, her trip down the back stairs bringing her around to the other side of the building so that whoever's eyes were trained on Abby's bedroom window now had their back to her.

She hid behind a car parked by the curb and watched the strange man for a minute. He kept his eyes on the binoculars and the binoculars focused on the 3rd floor corner window – Abby's bedroom. She took cover behind a passing car to cross to the other side of the street and hid behind the suspect's car. She shook her head at this man's total obliviousness. If she were back in Israel with Mossad she would kill him for such careless errors. Carelessness cost lives and valuable information to get into the wrong hands. But she was not in Israel, so she sufficed by slashing his back tires. She had her gun aimed right between his eyes when he jumped out of the car.

He dropped his weapon and kicked it toward Ziva. Ziva cast a quick glance around them and saw no one else. She bent down and quickly picked up the second weapon. "Who are you?"

The man remained silent. Ziva cocked her weapon and took a step closer. "My father sent you. Why?"

"Why do you think?"

"I would have thought he would have sent someone stronger. I broke you with my second question; you are not very far from an entry-level Mossad officer. I doubt you are even an officer yet. This is your entry assignment, yes?"

"And if it is?"

"Well them you failed." She had him on his knees with one swift, high kick to the side of his head. "You are expendable. My father thinks I would kill you and so sent the lowest person he could think of."

"Being low in the Director's eyes is a lot higher than most."

"You are right." Ziva nodded. She took the clip out of his gun and threw it down beside him, tucking the full clip into the back of her pants. "But I am not going to kill you. Tell the Director I still have two days." She knocked him out with a sharp blow to the head and ran back across the street. The back-up would arrive when he failed to check-in in an hour or so. He should be conscious by then.

**

* * *

**

"Ziva."

Ziva stepped out of the elevator. "Gibbs."

Gibbs pulled her to the side. "I'm sorry we had to pull you away. Given the circumstances I wouldn't do it if I didn't have to."

"Apologizing is a sign of weakness Gibbs."

Gibbs shook his head. "Not among friends."

Ziva nodded, appreciating how hard it had to be for Gibbs to apologize. "What have we got?"

"Is Abby safe?"

Ziva wrinkled her brow in confusion. "There was one guy outside the apartment at 06:00, but I took care of him and there was no one there when I left. I left her a message to call me when she wakes up."

"Is she safe?"

Gibbs wasn't talking about the guy outside the apartment this morning. "Yes. What is going on?"

Gibbs steered Ziva in the direction of their desks. She sat down and Gibbs popped a picture up on the plasma. It was the guy she caught spying on them a few hours earlier. He was dead. "We have a dead Mossad officer."

"He was not dead when I left him this morning. Bruised, yes, probable concussion, yes, but dead . . . no." She up toward MTAC. "I have a call to make."

Gibbs, Tony and McGee watched her climb the stairs and head into the Director's office. "You don't really think she would . . ? Do you?" McGee asked.

"No." Tony said. "Definitely not. I mean, look at this guy." He stood up and turned to the plasma. "He's a mess."

"Ziva knows how to kill without leaving a mark." McGee said.

Tony nodded. "My point exactly. He's all bloody and bruised and . . ." He tilted his head to get a different view of the picture. ". . twisted. This is not the work of our super ninja spy."

Gibbs looked up in time to see Ziva enter MTAC. A few seconds later people exited the room. Gibbs stood up and headed up the stairs. How many times was one of his agents going to be blamed for a crime they didn't commit? He climbed the stairs and put the file he had just been looking at in the door as the last person exited to prevent it from closing. Once they were gone he slipped in and hid in a shadow in the back of the room.

"Ah, Ziva. To what do I owe this pleasure?" Eli David showed up on the screen in the center of the room.

Ziva folded her arms over her chest. "Skip the pleasantries, I am in no mood."

"That is no way to talk to your father, Ziva."

"And this is no way to treat your daughter, Director." Ziva stated, staring at her father on the screen. "You had the man you sent to spy on me killed not even two hours after I left him unconscious. I did not kill him, so that means that you sent him on a suicide mission. I was not meant to kill him, so the only people left are the men who came to get him half an hour after I left him. Most likely to have it look like I killed him, but I would never be that sloppy. They did a good job at making it look like my work though." She played with the knife in her hands. "Same knife, yes?"

"They will be severely punished for such 'sloppy' acts."

Gibbs hoped to God this was being recorded.

"I learned how to kill without leaving a mark my first day in Mossad. Are you just taking people off the street and sending them here? It makes sense, harder for them to be traced back to Mossad if they are not, in fact, Mossad."

Eli smiled. "You are too smart for your own good Ziva."

Ziva looked away. "Why?"

"We had a deal Ziva."

"Yes, and that deal gave me four days here, with Abby."

Eli shook his head. "You underestimate me Ziva. I said I would give you four days and allow you to say goodbye. I did _not_ say that I would allow you to continue sleeping with this woman."

"You agreed to leave us alone for four days."

"I lied."

Ziva turned away from the screen for a second and looked back up with cold eyes. "I want to stay here, _with_ Abby and NCIS. I have no desire to be associated with Mossad any longer."

"NCIS doesn't want you Ziva. You are too much of a risk."

"I spoke to the Director a minute ago and he agreed. Special Agent status effective-"

"Leon lied to you as well. He would never agree to such a thing without speaking with me first."

"He already did."

Eli took a moment. "I will speak with him later."

Ziva shook her head. "I am happy here. I have a good job and friends. Someone . . . Someone I can see myself spending the rest of my life with, and that is not easy for me as you have made sure. You have stolen my mother from me, my sister, my brother, my childhood, my life…" She took a deep breath and calmed herself from getting any louder. "Is that not enough? What more do you want from me?"

Eli turned back to his work. "It was a mistake sending you to America. You have gotten too soft Ziva. Emotions have no place in our line of work."

No longer being able to stand still from the extent of her rage, Ziva began pacing around in front of the large screen to keep herself from breaking something. "This is not work. This is my _life_, these people are my _family_. What you are doing . . . not only is it hurting me, but it is hurting Abby. I know you do not care about her, but she does not deserve this. She is innocent. Her only crime was falling in love with me." She stopped dead in her tracks and looked up at the screen. "Damn it! I do not want to live without her! You can do whatever you want to me, but leave Abigail out of this."

Eli cast a quick glance up at his daughter's sharp tone before returning to his work. "You have lived without her before Ziva, you will do it again."

Ziva turned around and slammed her fists down on the nearest table. "I can't."

"You already have." Eli responded, eyes never leaving his paperwork.

"That was before I met Abby." She turned back around to face the screen. "I cannot go back from that now."

Eli leaned back in his chair, watching as Ziva paced. "You really love this woman?"

Ziva stopped. "Yes."

"Enough to give everything up for her?"

"Yes."

Eli looked deep into his daughter's eyes. He had never read something so clear in any of the eyes he had ever looked into. "Forget about her." He finally said.

Ziva swore in every language that came to her and resumed her pacing.

"Ziva this is for your own good."

"No! No it is not. It is not for my own good."

"You will thank me for this one day."

Ziva's head whipped forward and looked into the older man's eyes. He couldn't possibly believe what he was saying. "Do not count on it."

"I want you back in Israel tomorrow."

"I have two days left. You said I could stay here."

"Not anymore. Tomorrow Ziva. Or this man will not go away and you can spend the rest of your life in an American prison. As for this woman-"

"Do you even want a daughter?" She asked incredulously. "Or just someone who will follow your orders? I am done." Eli looked up. "I am done with Mossad. I am done with the fighting and the week, month, yearlong undercover missions. I am done waking up in strange hospitals trying to remember where I am and what my cover is. I am done running . . . I am done with all of the lies. I am done."

"Your flight leaves at nine pm, your time."

The video feed was cut and Ziva threw her headset across the room. Gibbs stepped out of the shadow. "Four days to thirteen hours."

Ziva turned and walked out of the room. "I need to speak with Abby."

**

* * *

**

Abby came out of the living room upon hearing the front door open and close. "Oh hey Baby." She stuck her fork into the stack of pancakes on the plate in her hands. "Thanks for the pancakes. They're amazing." Ziva stayed glued to the doorway and her eyes focused on the rug in front of her. Abby set the plate down, keeping her eyes on Ziva. "What happened?"

Ziva remained just inside the door's threshold, but finally looked up. The millisecond the first tear slid down her cheek Abby crossed the distance and wrapped her arms around the Israeli. Ziva completely lost it. "I'm so sorry Abby. . . I am so, so sorry."

Abby wrapped her arms tighter around Ziva as the younger woman completely collapsed. Abby was able to guide them to the floor without too much difficulty. "Ziva." She brought her hands to Ziva's face and forced Ziva to look up. "This is ridiculous. What is going on?"

"I never should have brought you into this."

"Brought me into what?" Abby was beyond panicked at this point. "Ziva talk to me. Please!"

Ziva pulled away and looked up at Abby. How was she supposed to give her up? How was she supposed to give up the one good thing that had ever happened to her? How could she go on knowing that Abby was living and breathing in the same world she was, yet having no idea if the forensic scientist was okay? "I have to go back."

"Back where?"

"Israel." Ziva replied. As much as she tried, it had been quite a while since she had been able to call Israel home.

"That's it?" Abby chuckled nervously. "You had me worried. I'm sorry that I've made you feel so bad about leaving. I know it's your home and your family is there. I'll miss you, but you won't be gone that long right? A few days? . . A week? . . A few weeks? . . A month?" Abby kept going as Ziva remained silent. "Longer?" She paled. "When are you coming back?"

"I am not coming back, Abby."

Abby took a few slow, deep breaths in an attempt to slow her rapidly beating heart. She felt every ounce of air leave her body in a mass exodus. This wasn't happening. It was all a dream and she would wake-up when it was over and she and Ziva would have a good laugh about it. It wasn't possible that her entire life was falling apart in a single moment. Not when everything was better than she had ever allowed herself to dream it would be. "What do you mean you're not coming back?"

Ziva looked up, down, around; everywhere but into Abby's eyes. "Please do not make me say it again Abby."

"Why?"

"My father found out about us." Was all Ziva said. Abby didn't need to know about all the threats or the man lying in autopsy with all evidence pointing to Ziva as the one who put him there. "He has ordered me back to Mossad."

Abby jumped up and started pacing back and forth, back and forth. "We can go somewhere." She pleaded. "We can become different people, start a new life."

"I cannot do that to you Abby."

"You wouldn't be doing it to me Ziva. We'd be doing it together."

"You need NCIS Abby. NCIS needs you – Gibbs, McGee, Tony-"

"I don't care!" Abby yelled as she dropped back down onto the floor, reaching out and taking Ziva's hands. "I need _you_."

"Abby please." Ziva begged, looking up at Abby. "My flight leaves in only a few hours. Do not make this any harder than it already is."

"I won't." Abby wiped a tear from her cheek and stood up. "It can't be any harder."

"Abby please!" Ziva called after her, but Abby kept walking and slammed the bedroom door closed behind herself. A few seconds later her 'music' blasted through the whole apartment. It wasn't good, but Ziva would miss it.

* * *

An hour later the music stopped. Ziva had packed up what she needed around the apartment and was sitting on the couch waiting. She checked her watch and saw that she still had several hours until her flight. She heard the lock to the bedroom door turn and took that as her cue. She headed into the kitchen to get a glass of water, knowing full well that crying tended to dehydrate Abby. She took something out of her pocket and mixed it into the drink, backhanding a tear away as she did. Then she made her way across the apartment and gently knocked on the bedroom door before opening it. "Hey."

Abby looked up. "Hey." She replied. She knew it was unfair of her to be mad with Ziva. If this was what it came down too, Ziva had exhausted every other possible option. She looked up at Ziva with a fresh batch of tears in her eyes. "Can you hold me?"

Ziva nodded and walked over to the bed, laying down on her side and opening her arms to Abby. Abby cleared her throat and Ziva handed her the glass of water, cringing as the pale woman chugged the liquid.

Abby set the now empty glass on the nightstand and melted into Ziva's arms. "I'm really going to miss you Zi."

Ziva tightened her arms around Abby. "I will miss you too."

"Can we just pretend that we're running away? Just for today?"

Ziva nodded. "Where are we going?" She asked.

"Paris." Abby stated with total confidence. "Everyone has been there except me."

"You have never been to Paris?"

Abby shook her head.

"It is beautiful." Ziva smiled as she remembered how absolutely breathtaking it truly was. "We will stay in this one hotel I know, right on the Seine with a perfect view of the Eiffel Tower out the window. We will stay in bed all day ordering room service-"

"Just ordering room service?"

"Among other things." Ziva smiled. "We will go out early morning, 02:00. The majority of the crowds are gone by then, and it is still dark. There is nothing like the Eiffel Tower at night. The full moon fixed overhead, the lights, the reflection across the water. We will watch the sunrise over the city . . . You will love it."

"We'll really go there someday, right?"

Ziva ran her hand through Abby's dark splayed locks. "Of course we will."

Abby yawned and snuggled deeper into Ziva's embrace. There was nothing she could do at this point to stay awake any longer. She was strangely exhausted. She and Ziva had gotten very little sleep the night before, but there was something else at play. They finally fell asleep around 04:00 only to have Ziva wake two hours later. Abby hadn't gone back to sleep after that, despite pretending to be at 07:15 when Ziva got called to NCIS. She had been known to turn out amazing forensics on less sleep. "Don't leave yet, okay? Just promise me you won't leave me."

Ziva placed a gentle kiss on Abby's forehead. "I will never leave you Abby."

Abby sleepily nodded. "I love you Ziva."

"I love you too." Ziva choked back a sob. "Goodnight Abby." She heard the slow, rhythmic breathing that came with sleep and looked down at Abby. She hated having to drug Abby, but there was no other way she would have been able to leave. "And goodbye."

Ziva stayed there holding Abby and encrypting every little detail of her to memory for the next few hours, until the last possible minute. Quickly she gathered up some of her things and packed them into the bag she had resting on the couch in the living room. Carefully folding Abby's favorite outfit of hers, Ziva placed them on her nightstand with the note she had written earlier. She unclasped her necklace from around her neck and placed it on top of the pile. She placed a final kiss on Abby's cheek, and she was gone.

* * *

Abby squinted as the first few rays from the early morning sunlight made their way into the room. It was morning? It couldn't be morning already. That would mean she had slept through the majority of yesterday afternoon and night. She turned over and was not at all surprised when her hand fell onto a cold, empty space beside her. It was not a dream. She slowly opened her eyes, hoping that Ziva was just out of her reach, but when her eyes were fully opened she realized that wasn't the case. She refused to believe it. Ziva was just in the bathroom or something. "Ziva?" The apartment was still.

Abby sat up and swallowed the lump in her throat, willing it to go away. She held the sheet over herself as she looked over at the barren space beside her. On Ziva's nightstand sat her grey sweatpants and green tank top neatly folded and a note. Abby looked away. "No." She said. Knowing perfectly well she was talking to herself. "No, because if I look and that note says anything other than 'got called in early' or 'went for a run' . . ." She tried swallowing the lump again, but it wasn't going anywhere. Very slowly she looked back across the bed. On top of the note was Ziva's necklace. Her sister's necklace; the necklace she never took off. There was no point in holding back the tears anymore. No matter what Abby did Ziva was gone.

She reached over and picked up the necklace, running her fingers over the cool metal before fastening it around her neck. Then she reached for the note.

_Abby-_

You have to know I never wanted this.  
Remember Paris.

_I Love You,  
Ziva_

Abby got out of bed long enough to put Ziva's sweatpants and top on and then climbed onto Ziva's side of the bed, laying on the Israeli's pillow and breathing in as much of Ziva's lingering scent as she possibly could. With a hand on her necklace and the other on the note she cried until she was sure she was well past dehydration. She finally fell back asleep hours later tracing Ziva's name on her note.

* * *

A/N: Bye Bye Ziva *tear* I've been experiencing a nice case of writers block. My muse likes it when she gets reviews, so let's lure her back, shall we? If not, then I guess Ziva's going to be gone for a while...


	7. Puppy Love

My Muse didn't like my Four Day plan, so she changed it.  
I also mention, slightly mention, but nonetheless mention a case, but it's not from any NCIS episode. It's totally a creation of my own mind.

A/N: Thanks so much for all of your reviews. My Muse ate them up lol. She's had a lot of good ideas this past week. Sorry Ziva's gone it kind of sucks, I know, but it is all part of my master plan. Also, I started an album of pictures relating to this fic. I won't post it here, but if you want to check it out the link is on my profile next to _Four Days_ under **Current Projects**.

VillageVoice

* * *

"Abby is one lucky woman." Tony began as he and McGee made their way off the elevator and over to their desks as they did each and every morning.

McGee placed a coffee on Gibbs's desk before heading to his own. "How so?"

"She's . . ." He took a deep breath. "Remember when me and Ziva went undercover as those married assassins and had to . . . you know . . ."

"But you didn't really . . . Did you?"

Tony sat down and smirked. "Nah, we didn't. Well, maybe . . . you know McNosey, I don't remember."

"You didn't." McGee chuckled and began getting ready for the day. "If you actually had sex with Ziva I highly doubt that is something you would forget."

"The point is," Tony interrupted. "I know we tease her about being this crazy chick, but she actually is this crazy chick."

"Really?"

Tony raised an eyebrow. "Really. She's incredible, and we were just faking it. To see what she can actually do . . . What I wouldn't give to be a fly on the wall."

"Keep dreaming DiNozzo." McGee laughed to himself as Tony slipped back to days gone by.

"DiNozzo, McGee!" Two heads snapped up as Gibbs entered the squadroom.

"Yes Boss." They both replied.

"Go down to Abby's lab and see if she's there."

"Uh, Boss?" McGee questioned.

Gibbs picked up his coffee cup and took a sip. "Campfire." It took both Tony and McGee a minute to process that. Gibbs was never a fan of the campfire. "Now!"

"Yes Boss." "On it Boss." They pulled their chairs over to Gibbs's desk and waited for him to speak.

"This does not leave the three of us do you two understand?" Tony and McGee nodded. "Ziva is gone-"

Tony stood up first. "I'll put out a BOLO and search her name for any airline tickets, bus tickets, train tickets-"

McGee was next to stand and make his way back to his desk. "I'll look for activity on her cards and see if I can get a GPS fix on her cell phone and her car-"

"I said Ziva is gone, not Ziva is missing." He motioned them back over and lowered his voice. "Her father found out about her and Abby."

"The emergency trip to Tel Aviv?" Tony asked. He knew there had been something up there.

Gibbs nodded. "He ordered her back."

"Why did she go?" McGee questioned. "Ziva wouldn't do something like that willingly."

"No one said she went willingly Probie."

Gibbs took another sip of his coffee. He was going to need it. "The dead Mossad officer we got yesterday" He began. "Ziva didn't kill him, but it was made to look like she did. If she didn't return her father was going to make it so that Ziva went down for that murder. And Abby-"

"Whoa." McGee interrupted, always protective of Abby. "He threatened Abby."

"Do you really think Ziva would have gone if he didn't McGee?"

McGee shook his head. "No Boss."

"She left last night and Abby isn't answering her cell or her home phone and I drove by her apartment this morning and her car wasn't there."

McGee left their little huddle and went to his computer.

"You don't think Abby went with her, do you Boss?" Tony asked.

"That would defeat the point of Ziva leaving now wouldn't it, DiNozzo?"

Tony nodded.

"Boss." All eyes turned to McGee. "Security has Abby entering the building half an hour ago."

Gibbs relaxed a little. "You two go get her and bring her home. I'm going to deal with this and I'll be by to see her later. Stay with her until I get there."

* * *

Tony and McGee stepped off the elevator and headed straight ahead into Abby's lab.

"Abby, what are you doing…" McGee took one look at Abby and paused. "Here?" He finished. He looked over at Tony who was also wearing a look of equal confusion. The first alarm was the lack of 'Abby music' in the lab. It wasn't that it was total silence - they had dealt with that before, total silence they could deal with. But no, there was classical music playing. Music that usually left Abby feeling incredibly tense and strung out now seemed to have no effect.

Abby was sitting down at her computer with her head in her hands looking up at the monitor. There wasn't even anything on the screen. That was the second alarm. The third was what Abby was wearing, or rather what she wasn't wearing. Her hair was down and she didn't have a drop of make-up on her face. No black lipstick, nothing. And she was wearing sweats. Grey sweats and a very much un-Abby ribbed green tank top. Any one of her signature platform boots were nowhere to be found either.

"Uh Abs?" Tony asked, venturing a step further into the lab.

"Yeah?" Abby responded in question, not bothering to look up.

"You're wearing sweats."

Abby nodded. "They're Ziva's."

"Abby, what are you doing here?" McGee asked. "Given the circumstances -"

"I can't go home." She turned around and looked at Tony and McGee. "Not without Ziva." She turned back to her blank computer screen and flipped the monitor on. A picture of her and Ziva appeared as the blackness faded away. Abby had taken it on their one-year anniversary after wrestling the camera away from Ziva. They were sitting up against a tree, the same tree they had laid under the night before watching the fireflies dance. Abby was sitting behind Ziva with her arms around the Israeli as Ziva leaned back in Abby's arms with a smile to match the Goth's own. She was laughing; a big, belly laugh that lit up her eyes and knocked her back into Abby's arms. For the life of her Abby couldn't remember what had made Ziva laugh, but the laugh was so contagious it had Abby in stitches as well.

"You two were really happy, weren't you?"

Abby smiled. Once they got over that post-break up awkwardness, McGee has become like an older brother to her. Always looking out for her and making sure she was happy. "Yeah. We really," She sighed. "Really were." She turned around with fresh tears falling down her cheeks and ran into McGee's arms. "I miss her Timmy."

Tony put a comforting had on Abby's back. "Why don't you come to the bar with us tonight Abs?"

"I can't." Abby shook her head.

"There's nothing a little alcohol can't solve."

Abby pulled away from McGee and walked back over to her computer. "It can't bring Ziva back."

"No it can't." McGee admitted sadly.

"It can dull the pain." Tony offered.

"Ignoring the fact that alcohol is a depressant and would only add to my depressed state, I just can't guys." She let out a deep breath. "I want it to hurt. I want it to hurt so bad that I can't breathe because the pain of missing her is the only part of Ziva I have left. The minute it stops hurting is the minute I let Ziva go." She sat down at her computer and looked back at the screen. "I'm not ready to let her go."

McGee and Tony looked at each other. They'd lost co-workers and friends before, but this was different. After Kate's death, with the arrival of Ziva they had all become close – a lot closer than they had been before. They had become a family. People went on with their lives, moved on, but it was harder knowing the person was still around, but just out of reach.

McGee sat in the chair next to Abby and looked up at the picture on the monitor. "How long were you two together?"

"Our one-year anniversary was last week."

"So that's why Ziva didn't answer her phone last weekend." Tony muttered.

Abby chuckled sadly. "Yeah."

"I was wondering why Gibbs kept head-slapping me every time I tried calling her."

"A year Abby?" McGee asked. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"Because we didn't want things to be weird at work. And Ziva is a really private person, you know? We didn't want any jokes from Tony and for things to become really awkward between me and you Tim. We were happy."

"Abby, as long as you two were happy we would have been happy for you too."

Abby looked over at McGee. "I know. It just took us so long to finally admit to our feelings that we didn't want to jinx anything. And we both agreed that it would be safer that way. There are plenty of people who would love to see Ziva suffer and I would have been only too good a target. We said that if we made it to a year we would tell everyone." Abby paused, playing with the pendant of Ziva's necklace around her neck. "We were going to do it when we got back to work Monday after our anniversary, but then there was the case with the dead Marine and his wife, and Ziva had to go back to Israel…"

"She was the one. Wasn't she?" McGee asked.

"I don't know." Abby sighed. McGee stared at her; that 'big,' 'bad' big brother intimidation stare he thought worked so well. Abby didn't want to let him down. "Okay, okay. Yeah . . . She was." Abby nodded sadly. "Is." She corrected. "I never told her."

Tony put his hands on Abby's shoulders. "She knew Abs - She knows. I . . . _we_ all noticed that she was happier since she came back from Israel. Smiling more, actually letting people hug her, but we never knew why." He smiled down at Abby.

"She was trying to leave." Abby smiled. "Mossad. Right after our ten month. Neither of us had been in a relationship that lasted more than a few weeks in years. She talked to the Director about making her position here permanent. He agreed, but he said it would take some time." She nodded. "Looks like her time was up."

Tony reached over and took Abby's hand. "We'll get her back Abby."

"Promise?"

Tony nodded. "Yeah."

Abby looked over at McGee.

He nodded. "Promise."

"Thanks guys." Abby put one hand over one of Tony's and the other on McGee's and smiled. "But I'm not leaving."

* * *

Abby didn't move as she heard someone enter the lab. She knew who it was. McGee and Tony had left five minutes ago to get the 'big gun' since they weren't working in convincing her to leave. "McGee and Tony." She explained looking up at the plasma screen on the wall. There were three pictures on the screen; one of Abby on the left, one of Ziva on the right and another was a beautiful little baby girl in the middle with Abby's green eyes and engaging smile, and Ziva's olive complexion and dark curls. It was part of the baby making program they occasionally fooled around with when they had nothing better to do. "Before Ziva . . . Before they knew she left-" She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to its owner. "I miss her Gibbs." She threw her arms around her surrogate father.

Gibbs held Abby as she cried, stroking her hair and whispering comforting words about how he would make everything okay. He would get Ziva back. "I will get her back. I promise." He said.

Abby pulled away. "It hurts."

"I know." He gave her a kiss on the cheek. "She's pretty."

Abby turned around and looked up at the baby on the screen. She wiped her tears and took a deep breath. "She's beautiful."

Gibbs took a few steps back and picked up the cardboard box he had brought with him into the room. He put it on the stainless steel evidence table and cleared his throat a few times until Abby turned to him. He motioned her over and kept his eyes focused on the contents of the box until she made her way over to the table. "Ducky says they're half German Shepherd, half Golden Retriever. About six, seven weeks."

Abby nodded, not really paying attention. She was too busy staring at Ziva's picture on the screen.

Gibbs reached into the box and picked up one of the puppies. They had come in with their latest case. Along with the dead Marine and his wife, the murderer has also killed the mother of these puppies when she tried to protect her owners, leaving the four puppies to fend for themselves and wonder around the crime scene until the bodies were found almost a week later. They had been cleared by animal control and once they had been poked, prodded and combed for every piece of possible evidence Gibbs had taken custody of the young dogs. Their mother was a military-trained German Shepherd, so there was a lot of potential for these babies. A lot more potential than Gibbs was willing to let be adopted out by the general public.

Out of the four puppies in the litter there was one like every member of his team. There was the first boy, mostly a brownish color with some darker browns and black German Shepherd markings over his eyes, ears, muzzle, back and legs, was cocky and knew exactly how cute he was and used it to get away with anything and everything that he could – he was Tony. The next little boy had slightly longer fur and lighter coloring loved to play with his littermates, but constantly found himself the victim of their playful nips as they were stronger and more outgoing than him – he was McGee. The largest of the litter, the most German Shepherd-like looking of the bunch, often sat off to the side watching his siblings playing and making sure everyone stayed in line and no one hurt the littlest one – he was Gibbs

Then there was the lone female of the group. She was the smallest of the litter; smaller than her siblings by a long shot, but also the strongest and the sweetest. Out of the four, she looked the least like a German Shepherd. She had the typical reddish coloring associated with red colored Golden Retrievers with some dark brownish/black streaks throughout her body and covering her muzzle, eyes and ears from her German Shepherd side. She was tough. This little girl could take on any of her brothers easily, but most of the time she was too busy chasing her own tail to even bother with the boys – she was the perfect combination of both Abby and Ziva.

Gibbs gave the little girl a quick pat and handed her to Abby. "She needs a home."

"I can't Gibbs." Abby protested as she held the tiny puppy close to her chest, stroking her soft ears. "She needs to be loved and be with someone who has time for her. I live in my lab Gibbs. Ziva didn't…" She trailed off, fresh tears springing to her eyes. "My landlord doesn't allow dogs."

"Already talked to your landlord and base command. Neither have a problem with the dog - you can bring her home and you can bring her here. She needs someone Abs." Gibbs reached over and ruffled the little dog's fur. "So do you. Take her home."

Abby nodded silently and walked out of her lab.

Gibbs sighed and turned back to the box. He looked to the pictures on the plasma and back to the remaining puppies. "Close enough."

* * *

Gibbs impatiently waited for the elevator to open and then marched over to his desk with a purpose. "McGee!" He called, standing by the Probie's desk as he awaited the update.

"Her credit cards have all been cancelled, cable and electricity in her apartment turned off. I've hacked into her laptop, but nothing has changed. GPS on her car hasn't moved. Passport records show that she had a two hour stopover in London and landed in Tel Aviv at 17:10, which was" He checked his watch. "Fifteen minutes ago Boss."

Gibbs walked over to his desk. "Any good news McGee?"

"Uh . . . her cell keeps going straight to voicemail." He quickly added. "She hasn't changed the number or gotten rid of it."

"Yet."

McGee turned back to his computer and tried to think of something else to look for.

"Your turn McGee." Gibbs stated, looking across the way and nodding toward the elevator. "Go." Gibbs had managed to get Abby to return to her apartment earlier. Tony and McGee had stayed with her for a while, but they had to get some work done. Ziva was gone and they did have other cases that didn't just disappear. Tony stayed with Abby, allowing McGee to return to the office as his computer and hacking skills would help track Ziva more than Tony's good old fashioned police work. Tony had done his shift and now it was McGee's turn for a few hours with their favorite Goth.

Gibbs had been in the office all day going back and forth from autopsy seeing what Ducky was able to figure out about the dead Mossad agent, the Directors office trying to figure out some way to get Ziva back and his desk. Ziva was a member of his team and he would be damned if he lost another member of his team.

McGee turned his computer off and gathered his things.

"I'll be there to take over at 23:00."

McGee nodded. "Yes Boss."

* * *

"Did you know Ziva can sing?"

McGee shook his head in the negative and sat down next to Abby on the couch, looking across at the television screen. It was muted, but he could tell what was going on. Abby was almost as good at sneaking up on people as were Gibbs and Ziva herself. Ziva was sitting at her piano and from the way her mouth was moving it looked like she was singing. "No. I didn't know that."

"She can dance too. . . And you've heard her on the piano."

McGee continued staring at the screen. All of a sudden the camera shook violently, perhaps from a sneeze, and that alerted Ziva to Abby's presence. Ziva's mouth flew open and she ran toward Abby, the quick and choppy movements of the camera showing Abby's less than graceful fall from the couch and her attempt at an escape, but Ziva was quicker. McGee smiled as he could almost hear the laughter.

The screen went blank and Abby absent mindedly ran her hands through the long, thick fur of the puppy sleeping on her lap. "I never understood why she went into becoming a . . . a trained killer when she had such gifts."

McGee and Abby looked at one another. "Israeli sense of duty." They chorused.

Abby smiled. "Yeah."

McGee's head snapped toward the door as he heard something enter the lock. His hand flew to his gun just as the door opened. Gibbs raised an eyebrow and McGee removed his hand from his weapon. "Sorry Boss." McGee apologized before mentally kicking himself for apologizing to Gibbs. "Didn't know you had a key."

"He has one to your place too McGee." Abby said.

"You do?" McGee asked.

Gibbs remained by the open door and nodded. "Oh yeah."

"He has one to Tony's and Ziva's too." Abby added sadly. Ziva's apartment had probably already been emptied and put on the market by now.

Gibbs looked at McGee and nodded toward the door. McGee gathered his things and gave Abby a sad parting smile. Abby smiled back as best she could and sighed when Gibbs re-locked the door behind McGee. She appreciated all Tony and McGee were trying to do for her, she really did, but they weren't helping. She knew Gibbs wouldn't talk or try to get her to talk about Ziva until she was ready and for that she was grateful.

"What are you going to name her?" Gibbs asked as he sat down on the other end of the couch, giving Abby all the space she needed.

"Harley." Abby replied, still mindlessly stroking the puppy's fur.

"It's a girl, Abs."

"I know that Gibbs. For our first date Ziva and I dug out my old Harley from storage and spent the weekend just . . . driving." Abby smiled. She would never forget the feeling of Ziva's arms around her waist as she drove, or her own arms around Ziva's middle as the Israeli took a turn driving the old motorcycle. That was when she knew they had something special.

"Abby I know you want to keep part of Ziva with you, but you need to prepare yourself for the fact that-"

"That it's just going to take a little more time to get her back." Abby interrupted as she brought her hand to the necklace she was wearing – Ziva's necklace. "You promised you would bring her back Gibbs. . ." She looked away from Gibbs and down at the puppy. "And it's either Harley or Archangel, so-"

"Why Archangel?"

Abby shrugged. "It was Ziva's sniper name. Remember?"

Gibbs nodded. "I like Harley better." He said, taking something out of his pocket and reaching over to fasten it over Harley's little neck. It was a little black leather collar with a blood red glitter centerpiece that had a silver skull right in the center.

Abby smiled. "Me too." She agreed. A few moments of silence passed between them before Abby spoke again. "She drugged my drink . . . yesterday afternoon before she left. I'm not sure what with."

"You going to test it?"

"No." Abby shook her head. "I trust Ziva. No matter what's going on she would never do anything to hurt me. She did what she had to do and truthfully . . ." She looked over at Gibbs. "It was easier that way."


	8. Believing

This chapter takes place within the first two weeks of Ziva being in Israel.

A/N: Loving the reviews guys. Keep 'em coming!

VillageVoice**

* * *

**

Ziva stood in the middle of the cold and silent apartment and looked around. It was so foreign to her; the sights, the sounds . . . this was her own apartment. She should know it, but she didn't. She dropped her bag at her feet and crossed over to the window. It was quite a different view from her apartment back in DC or the view from Abby's apartment, NCIS – different from everything she had come to love in her past few years spent in the American capital. That was home. This was not.

"I'm here." She said. "Now what?"

Eli David stepped out from the shadows of the kitchen. "Now you get settled. You're back here for good now Ziva."

Ziva scoffed. "I would not be so sure Director."

"Director, Director, Director . . . I do not think you have called me 'Papa' once since I asked you to come home."

"_Ordered_ me back to _Israel_." Ziva corrected. "Washington is my home and no father would order his child from her home or her family or friends…" She turned away from the window and cast her father a quick glance. "…her partner."

"_Enough_!" Eli yelled. "This is your home Ziva. You will be lucky if I do not restrict your passport barring you from ever returning to any country besides Israel, especially America."

"You can't."

"I can. You know information pertinent to the national defense and protection of several countries around the world. You are an extreme risk to the security of any country you step foot on."

"That is stretching it." Ziva responded, thinking how proud Tony would be of her for correctly using an American idiom.

"Perhaps. But coming from the Director of Mossad..." Eli shrugged. "You have extensive training in espionage Ziva. There is also the issue of you being a trained assassin, a very successful trained assassin."

"You have made your point."

"Point? What point? Can a father not simply be happy that his daughter has decided to move back home?"

Ziva shook her head.

"You were only a liaison officer, Ziva. It was never meant to be permanent."

* * *

Ziva was sitting in her father's office in Mossad at exactly 05:00 the next morning. She had slept little, but that had more to do with the ache in her heart and less to do with the time difference between Tel Aviv and DC, although her father would claim it was the latter. Ziva was well traveled. Her body was used to rising when she told it to and sleeping when she told it to, regardless of the time of day or where she was in the world. She could sleep anywhere, on anything. A nice warm, plush bed in a five-star hotel suite, good. A tiny wooden raft in the middle of the ocean during a category five storm, even better.

The three goons guarding her also did not aid in her attempt to sleep. There was one in the hallway outside of her apartment and two on the street below. She never slept well when she was being tailed. She didn't trust the people tailing her just as much as the person who hired them did not trust her. Although she had always been a fan of the number three. She probably could have taken them out without much effort, but her father would only send more in their place.

At 05:06 her father walked in.

"You're late." Ziva said, eyes not looking away from the spot she'd been staring at for the past six minutes.

Eli shut the door and made his way to his desk, not at all surprised to see Ziva in his office and in his chair. He dropped his briefcase beside his desk and waited for Ziva to move out of the chair. Eli cleared his throat and Ziva looked up at him, reluctantly vacating his chair and moving to one of the two on the other side of the desk. "So," Eli began, sitting down in the chair and returning it to its previous adjustments that Ziva had messed with. "What can I do for you Ziva?"

"You are the one who told me to be here."

"I never told you to be here. In the country, yes, but here-"

"When I was in Mossad-"

"You never stopped being in Mossad Ziva." Eli corrected.

Ziva rolled her eyes. "While I was here, we began at 05:00. I was here at 05:00. What is my assignment?"

"Go home Ziva."

Ziva was confused, but she couldn't resist messing with the Director. "I only just arrived here, but I will gladly get back on a plane and go ho-"

Eli David eyed his daughter sternly. "Go back to your apartment – Your apartment here." He quickly added.

"My assignment is to go back to _the_ apartment?" Ziva asked, purposefully not calling it her apartment.

"Yes."

Ziva watched as her father pulled some files out of a drawer and begin to add his signature to random pages. After a minute he looked up. "Why?" She asked.

"You need time to process things. I may not like it, but this woman meant something to you and you need to grieve the loss of that . . . relationship."

"She _still_ means something to me. The only thing I am grieving is the loss of a father." She charged out of the room, slamming the door behind herself.

"You grieved that a long time ago Ziva." Eli whispered after her before turning back to his work.

* * *

_"Romance between agents Kate, it never works."_ Gibbs sighed. Why hadn't he told that to Abby? He pushed, pushed, pushed and pushed rule #12 on all of his agents. Rule #12 – Never date a co-worker. It hadn't worked out well for him or anyone before him and it wouldn't work out for anyone else. He knew that. So why had he let Abby and Ziva continue seeing each other? It wasn't as though he could actually break them up. Abby and Ziva were two of the most stubborn women he knew, but if he had really pushed with Abby she may have at least entertained the thought of breaking things off. Even if it was just for a second. Why didn't he push?

"It's not your fault Gibbs." Abby said, entering the room in her pajamas and plopping down beside Gibbs on the couch. As much as she wished she could, she couldn't wear Ziva's sweats 24/7. She leaned over and let her head fall onto Gibbs's shoulder.

"How do you know what I'm thinking?"

Abby chuckled and snuggled closer. "I'm really good, remember?"

Gibbs laughed. "Yeah. I remember."

"I wouldn't have broken up with her even if you'd asked me to." She said.

"I could have ordered you too."

Abby scoffed. This was Abby. She knew Gibbs would never order her to do anything. He always asked very nicely – most of the time with a caf-pow and a kiss on the cheek when she had done what he asked. "Like you'd do that Gibbs."

"I should have Abby." Gibbs said, shaking his head.

Abby pulled away from Gibbs and sat up so she was facing him. "No you shouldn't have. Look Gibbs, I know we have a really weird indefinable father-daughter sort of relationship, and you would murder the president to protect me, but this is my life. I'm not a little girl anymore. I'm going to screw up, big time, I'm going to get hurt, I'm going to miss vital pieces of evidence and then have it come back and bite me in the ass-"

"No you won't Abs."

"Okay, I probably won't miss evidence." Abby chuckled. "But you couldn't stop this Gibbs. I believe that Ziva and I were meant to be together. I also believe that we'll be back together." She leaned back against Gibbs and let out a happy sigh when he wrapped his arm around her. "It's fate."

"Fate Abs? I thought you only trusted in science?"

"Science and people Gibbs – Well, certain people. Like you and Ziva. And Tony and McGee, Ducky, Palmer-kind of, maybe Director Vance someday, maybe, but not very likely, my family - _some_ of my family." She sighed. "Do you think she's ever going to come back Gibbs?"

Gibbs let out a long breath and held Abby closer, planting a kiss on the top of her head. "I don't know Abs."

"Gibbs?" Abby asked as she tried to stifle a yawn. Gibbs looked down at Abby. "I broke up with McGee because you asked me too."

"I know."

"You knew it wasn't going to go anywhere."

"Yeah."

Abby nodded. "You never asked me to do that with Ziva."

"No." Gibbs shook his head. "I didn't."

"Not that I would have done it even if you had asked, but it means a lot." Abby yawned and swung her legs over the edge of the couch. She looked at Gibbs. "That you believed too."

Gibbs watched Abby pad her way back to the bedroom, a little blur of fur trotting along behind her. "Abby, did you forget about rule number twelve when you and Ziva started seeing each other?"

Abby came out to the door frame and shook her head rigorously. "Of course not Gibbs." She smirked. "I just ignored it." Gibbs smirked as Abby turned back into her room, only to reappear a second later. "McGee wasn't even part of the team and thus not a co-worker to be breaking rule number twelve with when you asked me to end things with him. He was still working in Norfolk. You knew he was going to join the team."

"I may have had inside information."

Abby smiled. "Night Gibbs."

"Goodnight Abby."

* * *

"Complicated, complicated, complicated." Ziva muttered as she paced around her apartment. "I thought it was only in America that things were so . . ." She sighed and plopped down onto the couch. ". . complicated." She looked around the unfamiliar room and focused on her bag. Hidden inside one of the inside pockets was another pocket without an opening, so you would never be able to tell there was another pocket in the original pocket if you opened it. It was also surrounded in lead and thus impenetrable by airport x-ray machines and the Mossad officer who searched her things the minute the plane touched down in Tel Aviv. She hadn't even gotten to her bag before it was taken to be searched.

She dragged the bag over and placed it on her lap. With her knife she opened the secret pocket and pulled out a camera. She tossed the bag and knife to the side and with great momentum threw the camera to the ground. The camera shattered into tiny pieces that flew in every direction revealing a thin black phone within. She picked up the cell phone and flipped it open, quickly powering it up.

Her fingers hovered over the buttons for a few minutes before typing in the familiar numbers and writing as basic a text as she could. She knew they would be worried about her so she would let them know she was okay, but nothing more.

_'In Israel. Do not worry I am fine.'_

She looked out the window for a second. There was no way she could not include a message to Abby.

_'Tell her I miss her and I will always love her no matter what happens.  
Do not respond. I will be in contact'_

Once that was sent she dialed a number she had not needed in quite some time and put the cell to her ear. She just hoped that she remembered their code. This was a secure line as no one knew she had this particular cell. When she first came to America to track down Ari it had been the first thing she had bought as soon as she got off the plane. She bought two, and when she joined NCIS and got to know the rest of the team she gave the other to McGee, just in case. She had probably only made one or two calls with it and sent just a handful of texts. It was small enough to hide inside of her once beloved camera she had taken the insides out of to make into something she could hide things inside of. No one would think anything of her bringing her camera with her.

Someone picked up on the other line and the ringing stopped. He wouldn't say anything until Ziva did. Part of their code was that whoever made the call dictated which covers they would use. By saying the other person's name, the caller gave a whole back story they created many, many years ago. "Marc, bonjour!"

_"Ah, bonjour Talia. It has been a while."_ The man replied in a flawless French accent.

"It has." Ziva cast a glance around the room and then quickly out the window. She checked the entire apartment for bugs after her father had left when she first arrived. There was nothing there, but when she came back after going to her father's office there were five, which she had immediately destroyed. She took a second to make sure she remembered their codes. "How are Chloe and Elisa? It has been a few years since I have seen them."

_"They are well. They are very well; getting bigger by the day. We could free up some time this weekend if you would like to see them."_

"I was hoping to see them sooner than that." She couldn't remember their code for a next day meeting, so she just went for it and eventually he would get it.

_"They are in school today."_

"Then after."

The man sighed. _"They were supposed to visit their grandmother after school tomorrow, but I suppose we could always postpone."_

Ziva thought for a moment. If she really wanted her father to lighten up on the security, she had to lay low for at least a few days before trying anything. She changed her plan. If she behaved as if she was accepting that her life was now back in Israel with Mossad, there was a chance she could catch everyone off guard in a couple of weeks. "I would not want to take time away from their grandmother. I know they do not see her much."

_"They do not."_

"I am busy this coming weekend, but how about after that? In two weeks?"

_"I am sure the girls will enjoy that."_

"I will call you later to set everything up, yes?"

_"I will be here."_

"Merci Marc! Ciao."

_"Ciao Tali."_

Ziva nodded and shut her cell phone. She had a lot of work to do in the next two weeks if she wanted to look to be the perfectly obedient officer.

* * *

**[2 Weeks Later]**

A man sat down across from Ziva and looked around a few times before he took his sunglasses off. "Chloe and Elisa? Really Ziva? This has to be the furthest location from where I was. I am in the middle of an assignment." He said, his previous French accent gone and in its place his natural Israeli accent.

Ziva nodded. She had remembered what 'grandmother' was code and she appreciated his coming while he was currently involved in such a dangerous mission, but he was not going to get any sympathy from her. "It took me three and a half hours to get here."

"Three?" The man asked. "Were you at your apartment?"

"Yes." Ziva sighed. "I was being tailed. It took me a while to lose them."

"If it took you a while to lose them..." He shook his head. "They must be pretty good."

Ziva nodded. "Trained by my father."

"He order them to tail you?"

"Yes. He is making sure that I do not try to go back to America or contact anyone I worked with."

"I heard there was a girl."

Ziva laughed to herself. "Of course you did."

"So?" He wiggled his eyebrows. "Is there?"

"Yes." Ziva nodded. "Her name is Abby."

"She must be something special to have captured the heart of Ziva David."

Ziva smiled sadly. "She is."

The man eyed Ziva and leaned back in the chair. "She is the reason."

"Yes." She looked up at the man across from her with fresh tears in her eyes. "Ben I really need your help."

He took a deep breath and nodded. "Okay. So, how are we going to kill the great Ziva David?"

* * *

"I'm sorry Gibbs." Vance said with what little amount of emotion he could pretend to have. "The order came from her father."

"I don't care if it came from my father."

"He is the head of Mossad."

"What are you not getting? I don't care who the order came from. It could come from the president, our president, and would still tell him to shove it up-"

"I will pretend I did not just hear that." Vance interrupted. "She's gone Gibbs. Either find someone to replace her or just stay with the two agents you have it's your choice. But Officer David is gone."

Gibbs threw the Director one last look of contempt and stormed out of the office, slamming the door behind himself. He could not keep getting so attached to the women in his life. They were all either taken away from him or left at some point – His mother, Shannon, Kelly, Jenny, Kate, Hollis, now Ziva. Abby was all he had left. Kate, Ziva and Abby were like daughters to him. He lost Kelly, his real daughter and then Kate. Now Ziva was gone and who knew what her absence was going to do to Abby. NCIS was a family. He didn't know how much more of his family he could stand to lose.

McGee saw Gibbs exit the Director's office and all but run down the stairs. He was pissed. A pissed Gibbs usually meant make yourself look _very _busy and have good information ready in case he asked you a question. It most certainly did not mean make eye contact or say anything without being spoken to. McGee cleared his throat. It was time to make an exception. "Boss?"

Gibbs stopped at his desk and turned to McGee. He took a breath and relaxed. The team needed to stick together now more than ever. "Yes McGee?"

McGee took a deep breath. "Ziva is fine." He whispered.

Gibbs cracked a tiny smile. Ziva David was a smart woman. She and McGee were friends, but not especially close as she was with Tony or Abby. But Tony was her partner and partners always had a certain bond, and Abby was her girlfriend. So maybe McGee was the closest friend she had beside her platonic partner and her non-platonic partner, but nevertheless she knew that McGee would be the last one anyone would suspect of being in communication with her. He nodded to McGee and grabbed his gun from the drawer, heading over to the elevator once it was in it holster.

"Ah, Boss!" McGee called.

Gibbs looked over at the Probie and knew that he had more information. It was best they talk about Ziva where there wasn't a camera, like in the elevator where they had installed one after the man died on the elevator while in Ziva's custody. He walked over to McGee's desk and looked at him expectantly.

McGee stood up. "Are you staying with Abby again tonight?"

"You got a problem with that McGee?"

"No. No of course not Boss. Absolutely not."

Gibbs waited a beat and lowered his voice. "What else did she say?"

"She wants Abby to know that she misses her. And that she . . . loves her Boss."

Gibbs nodded. "I'll tell her."

"Thank-you Boss."

Gibbs went back over to the elevator while McGee got his things ready and headed over himself. He was not ready for Gibbs to be holding the elevator door open for him. "Thank-you Boss."

Gibbs let the doors close once McGee was inside. "McGee, you know that rule I have about not apologizing?"

"Yes Boss."

"Make that about saying 'thank you' too."

"Sorry Boss." McGee blurted out before he could stop himself.

Gibbs smacked him upside the head and laughed. They were a bit dysfunctional, but what family wasn't?


	9. Conversations with an Old Friend

Ziva's been gone for 2 weeks at this point, just so ya'll know. Dream in _italics._

A/N: Thanks for the reviews everyone! I'm glad to know that people are enjoying this story. Also, in order of the Thanksgiving holiday in a few short days I just may be inclined to post another chapter on Thursday . . . depending on the reviews of course ;P

VillageVoice

* * *

"I miss her." Abby stated into the cold early morning air, running her across the even colder stone in front of her. "The hardest part is not knowing whether or not she's okay. Whether or not I'll ever see her again." She let her face drop into the warm ball of fur sleeping in her arms. "My greatest fear before we got together was coming into work one day and Ziva not being there anymore. Just . . . gone. Back to Israel and I'd never see her again. It would just haunt me knowing we wasted so much time . . . dancing around each other. Now she really is gone and it is killing me." She took a long breath. "I don't know what to do Kate."

Abby picked up the single, long stemmed black rose from beside her and placed it in front of the headstone. She traced the outline of Kate's name one last time before standing up. She kissed the top of her fingertips and placed the kiss on the top of Kate's headstone. "I miss you too Kate. I really need you here right now."

Gibbs stood off to the distance keeping a watchful eye on Abby. He would not let one more thing happen to another woman in his life. Abby was all he had left and nothing was going to happen to her. He wouldn't put it past Mossad to try to get Abby to force Ziva to do what they wanted. That was not going to happen. He watched her put the puppy down and turn around to face him.

Abby crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow expectantly, little Harley standing in front of her owner barking protectively.

Gibbs cracked a slight smile and walked away from the trees stopping a few feet in front of Abby. "How long?" He asked.

"The whole time." Abby answered. "Your stealthy sniper hiding skills aren't what they used to be Gibbs."

"Maybe you're just 'really good'?" He suggested. Not many people would know when he was around if he didn't want them to, but Abby wasn't most people.

Abby smiled at the reference, remembering the day she had told Gibbs that she was 'really good' and him not letting her forget it since. "You're doing everything you can right Gibbs?"

Gibbs put his arm around Abby's shoulders and guided her out of the cemetery. "Everything I can. I promise Abs."

Abby sighed and cast Kate's headstone one last look. Gibbs's promises had always made her feel better – safe, protected and reassured, but now, for the first time since she had known her silver-haired Fox, she was doubting everything that came out of his mouth. It was a harsh reality when someone realized the person they trusted most in their life couldn't do everything, couldn't achieve the impossible. So far Gibbs has always managed to do that, but Abby was beginning to believe that his superpowers were nearing the end of their rope.

When they got back to Abby's apartment she was more lost than ever, unable to figure out what she was supposed to do or think or say. She wondered around the apartment with her jacket still on, Harley still attached to the leash in her hands following her owner around as she didn't really have any other choice. Walking around like everything was unfamiliar to her.

Gibbs unattached Harley from the leash and focused Abby enough to at least get her to stop moving for a second. "Do you want to stay with me?"

Abby shook her head in the negative.

"McGee?"

She shook her head again.

"There's Tony, Duck-"

Abby just kept shaking her head. "I'm staying here. There's still a chance that Ziva might try to contact me." She saw the look on Gibbs's face. "I know it's a slim chance, but there's a chance and I have to be here just in case. She's going to make sure I know that she's okay. I just don't know how she's going to, so..." She began, sitting down on the couch in the middle of the room. "I have to be here. I don't know how to be anywhere else, so I have to be here. She wouldn't try my lab, at least I don't think . . . No she wouldn't try my lab that's too risky. I have to be here."

"Okay." Gibbs nodded and sat down beside Abby on the couch.

"Gibbs." Abby waited until Gibbs turned to look at her. "Can you take me somewhere?"

* * *

Abby stepped into the apartment after Gibbs and looked around. She was right. "There's nothing left." Ziva's apartment had been emptied of everything and from the look of things it has been done in a hurry. She ran her hand alone a deep gash on one of the window frames against the back wall. "I thought maybe she would have left a note or something, but if she did they probably took it anyway."

Gibbs cleared all the rooms then waited by the front door allowing Abby the space to do what she felt she needed to. "It has been two weeks Abby. I'm sure Mossad has sent a lot of people to erase every trace."

Abby walked out of the kitchen holding Ziva's NCIS ID and badge in one hand and her service weapon in the other. "There's a secret hiding space behind the panel in one of the small cabinets above the fridge." She explained. "She must have come here before she left."

"She knew you'd find them."

"Yeah." She sighed. "I know it's probably against protocol, but . . ."

"Just ask Abs."

"Do you think I could keep them?"

Gibbs took a minute and raised his eyebrows questioningly. "Keep what? Mossad made sure to destroy all of Ziva's IDs, credit cards, anything with her name on it. As for her service weapon, they probably took that too because NCIS has been unable to locate it."

Abby smiled and enveloped Gibbs in one of her bone-crunching hugs. "Thanks Gibbs." They pulled apart and with a parting smile Abby wondered over to the window seat and sat down, curling her legs under herself and looking out the window. "She's okay right Gibbs?"

"Abby-"

"I know she may not be, but I just need you to tell me that she is. Unless she really isn't and in that case I would need you to tell me that too." She looked over at Gibbs, hope showing through her clear green eyes.

Gibbs crossed the distance and sat down next to the Goth. "Ziva is fine Abs."

Abby smiled, but nothing close enough to reach her eyes. She turned from Gibbs and looked back out the window.

"She's fine Abby."

"I know."

Gibbs shook his head. "No, you don't." Abby looked to Gibbs once again, this time with an eyebrow raised. "When she first came here she bought two untraceable cells – one for her, and one for someone on the team no one would think would know where she was if anything happened."

"McGee." Abby said. "But she called me when she was framed for assassinating that Iranian prisoner."

"You two weren't that close then. She was trying to be your friend. You weren't making that easy for her."

Abby looked away guiltily. "She called me as a test? If I called her back with the number she could reach you at, we were good, But if I turned her over to the FBI she wouldn't have bothered anymore? Was she was trying to find out whether or not I could be trusted?"

"Probably." Gibbs shrugged.

"We didn't have to be friends, but she wanted to make sure I wasn't a traitor." Abby sighed. Ziva David was such a complicated creature. "Anyway, what about the cell?"

"She gave the other cell to McGee."

"Smart choice."

"She sent him a text message thing yesterday."

Abby's eyes shown the first sign of hope Gibbs had seen in the past few days. "And?"

"She's fine Abs. She misses you."

Abby smiled, a great weight had been lifted. "And?" She probed. She could always tell when there was more to the story.

"And she loves you Abby. No matter what happens, she loves you."

Abby chuckled at the blush creeping in on Gibbs's face. Not much could make the silver-haired fox blush. She leaned in and placed a chaste kiss on his cheek. She stood up and with one final look around the room, took a deep breath and held her hand out to Gibbs. "I'm ready now."

* * *

That night Abby seriously considered digging out her old Ouija board she hadn't touched since college. She needed to talk to Kate in a bad way, but she didn't want to disturb her spirit. It would be selfish for her to pull Kate from the pure white cloud Abby imagined her sitting or lying or dancing on. She knew if she herself was in Heaven she sure wouldn't want to be disturbed, unless of course one of her friends needed help. Then she would be there in a minute. Abby also knew that it wasn't safe to use the board without at least one other person, and she really wasn't up for company. She added a little message to Kate in her prayers and left the choice up to her departed friend.

"Harley!" Abby called. When she failed to hear her little claws on the hardwood floor she thought maybe she had accidentally closed her little girl out of her room. "Harley?" She called again. "If you stole Bert again I will kill you – Okay, so maybe kill isn't the right word, but Mommy will not be happy." There still was no noise or movement that she could hear so she threw her legs over the side of the coffin and saw the little puppy sleeping on top of Ziva's pillow. She took a tentative step closer to the bed. Harley didn't like sleeping in the coffin, but Abby hadn't been able to sleep in the bed since that morning she woke-up to find Ziva gone.

She heard small little baby snores coming from the puppy and smiled. She would try sleeping in the bed tonight, but she wasn't promising anything.

* * *

_"Well, well, well, long time no see."_

___Abby blinked a few times as her eyes got used to the bright light. It wasn't morning yet, was it? She was inside and was pretty sure she hadn't left a window open when she fell asleep, so where was that breeze coming from and why was her mattress all of a sudden so uncomfortable?_

_"You look like hell girl. You didn't look this bad when I died. And I died!"_

_Abby's eyes shot open and she shot up. "Kate!" She ran toward her friend and wrapped her arms as tightly around her as she could manage._

_"Easy Abs. I might be dead, but-"_

_"Oh, sorry." Abby pulled away. "I've really missed you Kate."_

_"I know." Kate put her arm around Abby and guided her to a tree swing. Abby looked behind her and realized she hadn't woken up in her bed, but on a aprk bench. Maybe 'woken up' wasn't the right phrase._

_"This is a dream, right?"_

_Kate sat down on the swing. "Do you want it to be?"_

_"If you're here to be all cryptic and whatever, then you might as well leave."_

_"Okay." Kate pushed herself off of the swing and started walking away._

_"NO! I'm kidding. Please don't go." Abby pleaded._

_Kate smiled and sat back down. "Anyone been able to resist that pout since I've been gone?"_

_Abby smiled and sat down on the swing next to Kate that had suddenly appeared. "Not as of yet." She looked up at the full, bright leaves of the tree and noticed it was the same tree she and Ziva sat under when they made trips to the park. It never had swings before though._

_Kate laughed. "Of course not." There was silence as the two friends swung back and forth on the swings._

_"Will I remember any of this?" Abby asked._

_"Do you want to?"_

_"Kate!"_

_"Do you?"_

_Abby nodded._

_Kate grew serious. "You will remember parts of it, but nothing about me."_

_Abby bit her lip. "Do you know anything about her?"_

_Kate looked over at Abby before swinging herself even higher. "I know everything about her. I spent a lot of time watching her when I first died. I had to make sure she was worthy of my spot on the team and more importantly, my desk. I had to protect my team." She smiled. "She's a good person Abby. She's changed a lot since she first joined NCIS. She really loves you."_

_"I really love her." Abby responded, slowing her swing and looking down at the dirt._

_"I know. Ziva does too. She's trying to find a way back as we speak."_

_Abby smiled. "Really?"_

_Kate nodded. "Really. But it's going to take time. Just . . . when the time comes, don't believe everything you hear."_

_"What does that mean?"_

_Kate shrugged. "There's only so much I can tell you Abby."_

_"Says who?" The forensic scientist challenged. Kate just looked at her and shook her head. "She's safe right?"_

_"Ziva is safe. I've been keeping the two of you safe thus far I'm not about to blow it now."_

_"You've been watching over us?"_

__

___Kate nodded, pushing harder against the dirt, using her legs to push herself higher into the air. "You mostly, but then I saw how much she meant to you – well, how much you to meant to each other probably before either of you even realized it, and I knew that in order to protect you I had to protect her too." Kate chuckled. "Ziva made it pretty easy. She has to be one of the strongest women I've ever known either when I was alive or now. It really was - is" she corrected. "-sweet how much she cares about you. I can tell you that the guys who dragged her back to Israel aren't going to be breathing much longer, if only for the fact that they hurt you."_

_"So, wait . . . you haven't been like watching us all the time, have you?" Abby looked worried._

_Kate smirked. "Well . . ."_

_Abby jammed her feet down, stopping the swing, and reached over delivering a nice strong punch to Kate's right arm._

_Kate laughed. "Of course I don't watch you all the time Abby. Unlike Tony, I know how to respect people's privacy. You just might want to make sure he knows the difference between right and left."_

_"I suppose you're not going to tell me what that means either are you?"_

_"You'll find out eventually."_

_Abby nodded. "Right."_

_"I know you're depressed right now Abby as anyone in your position would undoubtedly be, so I'm going to put this as gently as I can . . . you need to snap out of it. You are the light of this team and without you, Tony, McGee, Gibbs . . . no one can keep them together but you. Ziva will not love you any less or stop trying as hard as she can to get back just because you go on living your life. I know that's a lot to put on you, and for that I am-"_

_Abby stood up in salute. "I will take my responsibility serious, Ma'am."_

_Kate stood up and hugged Abby. "See that you do."_

The light came in through a small tear in the window shade where the outside wind had blown away the curtain that usually covered the tear and blocked out the light. Apparently she hadn't shut the window all the way. Abby slowly opened her eyes, blinking away the small bits of sleep not wanting to leave. She looked out the window at the bright sunlight shining through and then to Harley, who looked up at Abby with her head to the side and her tale thumping happily against the bed. She smiled and picked up the growing puppy, laughing as Harley licked her face. "Today is going to be a great day." Harley continued to lick her owner's face. "How about we start off with a walk and a picnic? I know the perfect spot."


	10. Eighteen Months

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! Big time jump here. Don't know where it came from, but it came to me and thus I just went with it. If I don't go with it my Muse tends to get mad.

A/N: Don't forget to check out the album I made for Four Days. It's next to _Four Days_ under the **Current Projects** section of my profile. I did add a few more pics from this chapter so take a look.

Hope ya'll like! Hope ya'll have a wonderful Turkey Day!

VillageVoice

* * *

**[18 Months Later]**

"Hey Abby, I need those-"

"Finger print results?" Abby finished, twirling around as Gibbs entered her lab. "I'm working on it Gibbs."

"Work faster.

"Gibbs! I can only push my babies so fast before they french-fry, and I will not put any one of them through that again. Well, not purposefully." She smirked, turning back to her computer. Her nose twitched. "Do I smell Caf-Pow?"

Gibbs shrugged. "I don't know. Do I smell DNA results?"

Abby sighed. "I'm still working on that too." Gibbs just stared at her. "Gibbs, you do know that I work for all of NCIS, right? Not just Team Gibbs minus one?" She refused to call it Team Gibbs without Ziva, so she had promptly started calling the team Team Gibbs minus one shortly after Ziva left.

"Put a rush on it."

Abby turned around to face Gibbs. "You do know that I work for all of NCIS, right?" She reiterated. "Not just you."

"Eh." He walked away slowly, dangling a Caf-Pow. "Who else brings you these?"

Abby pouted and stomped her feet. She was swamped and as much as she would like to, she couldn't just make the computer or any of her other machines run faster with the snap of her fingers. She also couldn't put everything Gibbs brought her ahead of everything brought to her by every other team at NCIS. "I will try to speed things up here Gibbs, but it has been crime city these past few weeks. I have evidence that has been sitting here since last Tuesday that I haven't even had the chance to look at yet, never mind start processing."

Gibbs took a step back and crossed the threshold out of the lab - with the Caf-Pow still in hand.

"I'll put a rush on it! Well not a rush, because my rushes are backlogged by at least a week, but a rush-rush." She cocked her head, trying to remember how far her rushes were backed up. It was probably more than a week. "Maybe a rush-rush _rush_ rush. . . Maybe?"

Gibbs walked back into the lab and deposited the Caf-Pow right into Abby's hands and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "You're the best Abs."

Abby took a long sip of her over caffeinated drink and turned back to her computer. "I do what I can." She waited until she heard the doors close behind Gibbs and looked over at Bert. "Good thing he didn't ask about the ballistics."

* * *

Tony picked up his desk phone and dialed the extension for Abby's lab. The team had the night off and Tony knew that when they had the night off, Abby did too. A few rings later there was still no answer. He tried her cell, but that went straight to voicemail. "Abby's not answering so I'm going to go down there and see if she wants to come with us."

McGee nodded. "I'll be here."

Tony waited patiently for the elevator to drop him off at his allotted floor. When it finally let him off at Abby's lab, he felt all the energy and excitement he had for their night off drain from his body. He suddenly felt like something was holding him down. There was a weight that hadn't been there a second before.

He stepped into Abby's lab to find her sitting in the dark in her office, which wasn't unusual for the team's resident night owl. But she was sitting back in her chair clutching Bert close to her chest. Even Harley, a large now full grown dog with long flowing golden fur, barley lifted her head from her black, skull and plaid bed beside Abby's desk when Tony walked in. "Hey Abs!" He said with as much enthusiasm as he could muster.

Abby looked up and gave Tony a soft smile. "Hey Tony."

"Gibbs gave us the night off."

Abby nodded, bringing her chin back down to rest on Bert's back.

"McGee and I are heading to the bar. Wanna join?"

"Thanks Tony, but I'm not really up for it tonight."

"What do you mean you're not up for it tonight? You're up for it every night."

Abby took a breath and motioned Tony closer. When he was right next to her she popped up the digital calendar on her computer. "It's been eighteen months and two weeks today since Ziva was taken from us."

"Oh . . . I'm sorry Abby, I didn't know."

"It's okay." Abby sighed. "I just thought we'd get her back."

"You don't think so anymore?"

Abby shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know what to think anymore Tony."

Tony wrapped his arms around Abby and held her tight. He didn't know what to say and he knew that where Abby was concerned, hugs were far better anyway.

"It's been eighteen months Tony! That's almost two years. McGee has given up, you've given up, Director Vance never even tried to get her back, even Gibbs-"

"We haven't given up Abs." Tony reassured the Goth as he kneeled down beside her. "We will keep fighting and searching until she is standing right here in this lab do you understand me?" Abby slowly nodded. "We will get her back Abby."

Abby looked deep into Tony's eyes for several seconds before throwing her arms around him and burying her face in his neck. "I miss her so much Tony."

"We all do Abs. You sure you don't want to come out with us tonight?"

Abby shook her head and offered Tony a smile, slipping out of Tony's embrace. "Thanks, but no. I can't. Gibbs would kill me."

"Why?"

"Well beside the fact that I'm having dinner with him tonight, apparently I drink too much."

Tony scoffed. "Go figure."

"I still maintain that it is perfectly normal to get passed-out drunk at least once a week." Abby called over her shoulder as she headed into the bathroom to change.

Tony headed toward the elevator. "That explains so much."

* * *

Gibbs never used any part of his house often besides the basement. He ate at NCIS, he slept at NCIS and he even showered at NCIS. But for Abby he dusted out his oven and cleaned off the dining room table, even plugging his refrigerator in and buying groceries. He had made a cheese and broccoli ravioli, something Kelly had loved and thus he was pretty good at making it. It was one of Abby's favorite dishes as well.

He walked back into the kitchen with the last from the table to find Abby washing the dishes in the sink. "Figured the dishwasher was just for show."

Gibbs added the plates to the pile Abby was working on and opened the dishwasher door. He couldn't remember ever even having the thing installed. "You probably figured right. But you don't have to do the dishes Abs."

"One person cooks, the other cleans up after. That's how it works."

"Is that how it worked with you and Ziva?"

Abby handed a plate to Gibbs to dry. "Yeah."

Gibbs put the dried plate in the cabinet and took the next Abby was holding out. "You did most of the cleaning then."

Abby chuckled. "Yeah."

"I'll bet you haven't used your kitchen since she's been gone either."

"No." Abby admitted softly.

Gibbs reached over and turned off the water and unplugged the drain. "You've gotten thin Abs."

Abby ignored him and picked up the glasses, turning the water back on to wash them. "I'm fine Gibbs."

Gibbs put it aside for the moment. He would keep a more careful eye on her and make sure she was eating by bringing food rather than Caf-Pows down to her lab, and by making these dinners a more frequent occurrence. "What did you want to talk to me about tonight Abs?"

Abby turned off the water and turned around to face Gibbs. "I'm going away Gibbs."

"Where?"

"Not relevant. What is relevant is that I've been at NCIS for many, many years now and it's time for a change."

"I'm listening."

"I've gotten around three or four job offers every year since I started this job, but over the last few months I've been getting that many every few weeks. So . . . I have decided it's time for a change. I'm leaving NCIS."

* * *

"What brought on this need for change Abby?"

Abby cringed. So she was back to being Abby now. That was never good; Abs, yes – Abby, not usually. She had managed to hide from Gibbs for a couple of days, but Tony and McGee were out of the office so neither was able to call down and warn her that Gibbs was going down to the lab. Abby looked up from her microscope. "I can't be here anymore Gibbs, it's too . . . Walking up to tell you or McGee or Tony what some test results showed and seeing Ziva's desk empty day after day. It's too hard." She turned back to her microscope.

Gibbs remained silent. He knew the best way he could help Abby was to let her talk and she would work things out for herself.

"I thought she'd be back by now Gibbs. You said you would get her back – you promised me that you would get her back. It's been eighteen months! That's . . ." She walked away from her microscope and started pacing around her lab, walking past the wall she had covered with pictures of Ziva as well as a post-it with the day count of how long she'd been gone. "That's . . . eighteen months! Everyone says that there's still hope she'll come back, that they're all still fighting. But fighting what Gibbs? If her father doesn't want her to come back no amount of hope or fighting is going to bring her here. I just," She shook her head, stopping to look over her Ziva shrine. She ran a finger over the picture of Ziva she has taken with her cell phone all those years ago.

"I need to get away from here. I need to move on – well not move on, but go on, continue on." She looked to Gibbs. "My brother and his wife just had another baby- another two actually, twin boys. And my niece has been feeling neglected and asking for some Auntie Abby time. I've been getting pretty impressive offers from this one place that have kept getting more and more impressive each year and they made their final offer about a month ago and I accepted. My own state-of-the-art lab, normal working hours with nights and weekends completely off, vacation time, a salary three times what I'm currently making . . . I couldn't pass it up Gibbs. And it's only twenty minutes from my brother's house.

"This place, it kills people Gibbs. It kills people and it lets its valued employees be ordered back to foreign countries thousands of miles away against their will and it sends people to live in the middle of oceans . . . I need to be somewhere where I don't have to pray that my friends will make it into work in the morning or home at night. I don't want to have to pray every single time one of you leave the building that you will return. I don't want to keep getting calls at two in the morning saying someone is in the hospital or someone's been shot or stabbed or someone is in a coma. I've been attacked how many times in this lab? I just . . ." She looked down at her hand. "I want to be able to watch my niece and nephews grow-up. I need to be reminded that there is still good in the world Gibbs."

Gibbs took a minute to take everything in. Abby was the last. He had officially lost every last woman in his life. "Family's important." He had let her down. She was his family and he let her down. He turned and walked out of the lab.

* * *

"Do you have your passport?"

Ziva raised an eyebrow and held her passport up for her father to see. This wasn't the first time she was going to another country for a mission. She knew what she was doing.

"And your bag?" Eli asked.

Ziva kicked the bag at her feet. "I have done this before."

Eli nodded. "Of course of course. It is just…"

"It is just the first time you are letting me leave alone on a mission in the eighteen months since you ordered me back to Israel."

"Ziva are you really still on that?" He opened a drawer and pulled out a large manila envelope, tossing it to the edge of his desk. "As you said, it has been eighteen months. People have moved on." He nodded to the envelope as a sign for Ziva to take it. "Including your dear Abby."

Ziva remained where she was until her curiosity got the better of her and she grabbed the envelope off her father's desk on her way out the door. Her father did not deserve the satisfaction of seeing any reaction she may or may not have.

"Ziva." Ziva paused at the doorframe. "Congratulations." He said.

Ziva ran out the door. How could he know? He couldn't know, she barely knew. She pushed the thought far from her mind and got into the car waiting for her. Slowly she opened the envelope and poured the contents into her lap. Abby had moved. The first picture was of her and a man in a suit with a some real estate company nametag pinned on his pocket. He was handing Abby a key and a packet of documents. It was a big dark stone house with a big yard just like she had always wanted, and the dog she had been yearning for was sitting obediently at her feet. She also had a new job Ziva noted, picking up the next picture. Ziva felt a picture slip off her lap and reached down to pick it up. Abby had a new family too. The photograph showed Abby and a handsome man with dark brown hair and striking blue eyes fawning over two newborn infants. They looked very happy.

Ziva wiped a tear from her eye and stuffed the pictures back into the envelope. She did not need to see the rest. It took nine months, give or take a couple of days or weeks to have a baby. That means Abby only waited for her for her to return for nine months. Ziva shook her head. She didn't even wait a year.

Half an hour later the driver dropped her off at the airport and waited until she was inside the departure gates before he got back in his car and drove off. Ziva stepped out of the check-in line and dialed a familiar number into her cell. "Ben? . . . It is time."

"What about the pictures?" He asked, stepping out of the men's room next to Ziva.

Ziva shut her cell. "I do not care. I cannot do this anymore." She walked over to the trashcan and dropped the envelope and the pictures into it. "I do not want to." Ben held out a matchbook and Ziva smiled up to him. They were safely on the plane by the time anyone noticed the flames shooting out of the barrel.

* * *

Abby packed her last leather studded dog collar into her bag and zipped it shut, taking one last look around the room. She would leave Ziva's things where they were. Eighteen months later it still hurt like the first morning she woke-up without Ziva. Ziva's whole side of the bureau had remained untouched since the last time the Israeli touched it. Tony and McGee would secure the drawers before they moved it into the truck so that nothing would fall out. Everything would stay where Ziva had last left it. Ready and waiting for her return.

"Abby, anything else you need us to grab before we start on the furniture?" Tony asked, poking his head into the room. He didn't dare to enter without expressed permission, preferably written and notarized with a witness present.

Abby took a deep breath and slung the bag over her shoulder, shaking her head. She smiled as she passed Tony, stopping at the front door. "Actually Tony, could you get my album? It's in the first draw on the left in the bureau." Abby asked. "Please?"

Tony groaned and walked into Abby's room. Damn her adorable pout. She was like the little sister he never wanted because she always got everyone to do everything for her. That wasn't really true. Abby was pretty independent and did just about everything for herself. But still, no one could resist that pout. Not even Gibbs. He entered the room and walked over to the bureau. He opened a drawer and his eyes went wide. He picked up a camo and pink lace bra and just stared at it.

When Tony didn't come out after a few seconds Abby walked over to the doorframe of her room. She smirked. "I wouldn't touch that if I were you, Tony."

Tony was too entranced to let go of the garment. "Why not?"

Abby crossed her arms over her chest. "It's Ziva's."

The bra immediately fell from Tony's grasp. He looked over at Abby. "No it's not."

Abby raised an eyebrow and reached over, picking up the bra. "I could show you pictures." She returned the bra to the drawer and closed it shut. "But I don't think Ziva would appreciate it."

"Oh no, she would." Tony protested.

Abby put her hands on her hips. "Gibbs in that bra."

Tony immediately snapped out of it. "That was not nice."

"Neither is imagining my girlfriend in her bra."

"Good point." Tony admitted defeat. "But did you have to say Gibbs?" He shook his head. "It's going to take a while to get that image out of my head."

"Would you rather I'd said Ducky?"

Tony put his hands over his eyes. "Why Abby?"

Abby chuckled. "And for future reference Tony." Abby began, opening the drawer next to the one Tony had opened and picking up a small black and silver photo album. "This is the left."

Tony followed Abby and the album with his eyes. "Hey," His feet quickly caught up with him and he ran after Abby. "Are those the pictures?"

Abby laughed and let him grab the album as he ran past her out of the apartment. "Tony!" She called after him, tossing him her bag. "I'll be down in a minute." Tony nodded and ran toward the elevator, afraid Abby would take the album back. Abby shook her head and smiled. It wasn't even their private album. That was safely tucked away and hidden among her underwear, and Tony and McGee both had good enough sense not to go anywhere near that suitcase.

She walked back into the apartment and took one last look around. She wasn't above moving the furniture herself, but Tony, McGee and a couple of her other guy friends had offered and Abby didn't dare encroach on their manly masculinity.

"Are you Abby Sciuto?"

Abby turned around at the sound of an unfamiliar voice. "Depends on who wants to know."

The man picked up a package from beside him that had been hidden by the door and held it out to Abby. "Delivery."

"Oh yeah, then I'm her." She took the package.

"Sign here please." Abby took the clipboard and scribbled what only she would ever be able to identify as her name.

Abby took the package and noticed there was no return address on it. "Is there a return address?"

The delivery man checked his sheet. "Sorry ma'am. Have a nice day."

"You too."

She watched the man walk down the hall and closed the door once he was out of sight. "I'll ignore the fact that he just called me ma'am." She said to no one, taking the package and setting it on the dining room table. "What could you be?" After careful inspection that it was not emitting any sounds, smells or vibrations that it would blow up in her face Abby made short work of the tape holding the package together. Something told her this was nothing that was going to hurt her.

Under pounds and pounds of packing peanuts was a furry jet black stuffed bear. It was wearing a red ribbed tank top with a black rhinestone scull in the center, a red, black and white plaid skirt, pretty adorable mock platform boots with red laces and chains, and even an adorable little white lab coat with NCIS embroidered over the pocket. The forensic scientist's heart broke. It was the cutest thing she had ever seen. "You are so cute!"

She put the bear down to look at her and noticed something poking out among the packing still in the box. Tears immediately sprung to the Goth's eyes as she unfolded the small paper. All it said was,

_'Paris'_

"Hey Abby you ready?"

Abby quickly wiped her tears and pocketed the letter. She picked the bear back up and turned to McGee with a smile on her face. "Yeah." She looped her arm through McGee's. "Let's go."


	11. Trust Your Heart

FYI, just because Abby is seeing Kate in her dreams, she is not crazy. Just want to say that. Abby did ask Kate to help her and Kate being the dutiful friend, is doing just that. This chapter also shows another side of Abby we don't get to see in the show so much. She is usually so tough and strong, so I felt it was time to show her not so strong.

A/N: I want to thank everyone for the reviews on the last 2 chapters! Especially reading the chapter I posted on Thanksgiving. I know people are away and celebrating the holiday with family and friends, so I appreciate those that took the time to read the chapter and review it. Also, don't hate me for what happens in this chapter lol.

VillageVoice

* * *

_"Why isn't she back yet Kate?"_

_Kate walked over and sat down on the swing next to Abby. "Give it time Abs."_

_"I've given it time. I've given it lots of time. I've given it almost two years of time." She hugged her little Goth lab bear close to her chest. "I moved. And now I know what you meant about making sure Tony knows the difference between right and left. I caught him with one of Ziva's bras, and not one of her everyday ones."_

__

_"I tried to warn you." Kate shrugged. "You won't be happy there Abby. Not anywhere near as happy as you were at NCIS, even with the 24 hour work days and lack of sleep."_

_Abby chuckled. "I tried to do what you told me to, to 'snap out of it' and be there for the team, to keep them together, but I can't do it anymore."_

__

"You can't take this job either. It's not the answer Abby. "

_Abby sighed and got off the swing, walking in circles around the tree. "I know it's selling out-" Kate scoffed. "I know, I know. It's just too hard going there every day and seeing Ziva's desk empty and no one trying to get her back."_

_"They are doing all that they can Abs."_

__

"I know. But I just . . ."

__

Kate reached out and grabbed Abby by the wrist to stop her path around the tree. Abby slowly turned to face her friend. "You just what?"

__

Abby sat back down on her swing next to Kate. "I just need to be somewhere where I'm not reminded everyday that she's not here. I need a new place that doesn't hold any lingering smells, or that at least that doesn't trick my mind into thinking I can still smell the scent of her shampoo or her perfume if I close my eyes tight enough and hope deep enough. A clean start with no memories of Ziva walking down the hall or making breakfast in the kitchen. I can be closer to my brother and my niece and nephews. Have you seen them? They are so cute Kate. I took them to the park with Brian the other day to give Becca a chance to have some alone time with my sister-in-law. I really wish I could have kids."

_"That's a cop-out Abby and you know it."_

_"What am I supposed to do Kate? I am doing everything I can not to break down every minute of every day and I make one little move and-"_

_"This was not one little move. You up and moved your entire life, leaving your friends and a job that you love."_

__

"I need a break!" She yelled, standing up and pacing around in front of the swings.

__

"Then take one!" Kate yelled back, leaving the swing and the tree and stopping in front of Abby. "Take a few weeks, a few months, but don't leave NCIS. Don't leave Gibbs and Tony and McGee and Ducky because you can't take it anymore. They're your family! I died and left them to you . . . and you let me down."

__

Abby locked her eyes on Kate's. Kate was mad. She had never really seen Kate mad like this. Maybe being dead made her even madder than she got when she was alive. She looked away guiltily. The one thing Abby Sciuto could not stand was disappointing people. Especially people close enough to be considered family.

_"I have done everything I can to get her back. And now when things are finally coming together you give up?"_

_Abby's eyes lit up. "Ziva's coming back?"_

_Kate's anger seem to dissipate at Abby's tone, so childlike and full of hope. She took a step back. "When the time comes, don't believe everything you hear." She took a few steps from Abby. "Trust your heart Abby." She turned and walked away, Abby unable to speak or move could do nothing but watch her go. "It's never been wrong before."_

* * *

_"Sciuto!" Abby cringed. How many times was she going to have to tell this guy to call her Abby? "I'd like to introduce you to your new assistant."_

_'Whoa.' Abby thought. She swung her chair around to face her boss and the twenty-something barely-legal twig of a woman standing next to him. "First of all, it's Abby. And second of all, I didn't ask for an assistant."_

_"Consider me free of charge." The girl said._

_Abby resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Her first day and the new boss man was already giving her shit. "You don't understand. I can't work with anyone. Back at NCIS I had an assistant and he framed one of the agents for murder and almost got away with it, and he tried to kill me. I work alone."_

_"Well Kimmy here has been thoroughly screened."_

_"Are you kidding me?" Abby mumbled. He called her Kimmy, but refused to call her Abby? She looked over at the corner of her computer and checked the time. It was three minutes past when her shift ended. Normally she would hate leaving so early - especially on the first day of a new job, but there really was nothing left to do and this was a special circumstance. "What do you know, my shift's over." She turned to her boss. "I'll see you tomorrow Sir." She grabbed her coat and her bag and stood up. "Kimmy . . . it was nice meting you and I'm sure you're a nice person, so don't take this the wrong way, but I really hope I don't see you tomorrow."_

_"Sciuto!"_

_Abby paused at the stairs. What kind of place didn't even have an elevator? She was not used to stairs. Her platform boots weren't exactly made for them either. She plastered a smile on her face and slowly turned to face her boss. "Yes Sir?"_

_"Miss Sciuto, we need to talk." She raised her eyebrows expectantly and let him talk. "First of all Kimmy will be your assistant. There is a lot of work and there is no way you can do it all yourself."_

_"Oh please. I had twenty times this workload at NCIS and did it all myself without any sleep for days at a time."_

_"Non-negotiable. And also, your wardrobe-"_

_"Non-negotiable."_

_"Miss Sciuto you will not show up in this again, are we clear? It is unprofessional and . . ."_

_Abby tuned him out as something caught her eye. "I'm sorry." She interrupted. "Could you excuse me for a minute?" She walked down the hall and turned the corner. "I should have guessed." She said, crossing her arms over her chest._

_Kate chuckled and sat down on the swing hanging from the tree that magically appeared along with the rest of the park. "I told you this place wasn't right for you when you were first considering this job Abby."_

_Abby admitted defeat and planted herself on the ground under the tree. "Is he really going to insist on calling me 'Miss Sciuto'?"_

_Kate nodded. "I'm afraid so."_

_"And my clothes?"_

_"Oh yeah, they're gone. I see Career Barbie making a comeback. You'd be better off writing a book."_

"NO!" Abby shot-up in bed, drenched in sweat. She looked around and was instantly confused. It was going to take a while to get used to the new surroundings. She took a few deep breaths and looked over to the beautiful being lying next to her and gave her a nice belly rub. "What are we going to do Harley?" She sighed. "I can't take this job."

* * *

"And what exactly is the reason for this Miss Sciuto?"

Abby cringed. This guy in real life was no better than the guy in her dream. "I need to take some time for myself. I've been working ever since I can remember and I'm finally at a place where I can afford to go on a…" She searched for the right word. When she found it she smiled. "A sabbatical."

"Sabbatical?" Abby nodded. The graying man leaned back in his chair and smiled. "Well, we've been after you for years now. I suppose a few more months won't hurt."

"Thank-you. I appreciate it . . . Sir."

"What are your plans?"

"I don't know. I've always wanted to travel, maybe . . ." An idea suddenly popped into her head. "Maybe write a book."

"That would be a great book. You do amazing work."

Abby beamed. It was nice to have your work validated. She learned early on in her NCIS career that the only validation she was ever going to get was a caf-pow and the occasional kiss on the cheek. She helped them with kick-ass, iron-clad evidence and yet nothing was ever mentioned of her in the news or the papers. To be fair though NCIS wasn't usually mentioned either. It was usually the FBI, the CIA, or . . . the 'federal authorities.' "Thank-you Sir."

"Take as long as you need, as long as you start as soon as you're ready."

Abby looked out the window. About that…

* * *

"Ah B-Boss?" McGee tentatively rose from his desk and pulled a video news feed up on the plasma. "You want to see this."

Gibbs stopped mid-step on his way up to MTAC and turned back around. McGee valued his life more than to call him back down for something that wasn't important. "What is it McGee?"

McGee remained silent as he allowed Gibbs to see what had happened for himself. He stealthily pulled out his cell phone and sent Tony a quick text to get back to the squadroom a.s.a.p. When he looked up Gibbs was gone and there was a picture of 'Mossad Officer Ziva Aniah David' with the date she was born and yesterday's date. The date of her death.

Tony flew into the bullpen and silently slipped up behind McGee fully intent on pulling some sort of prank, but his arms fell when he saw the screen. He sighed. "Not again."

Gibbs barged into the Director's office and threw the door open so hard the doorknob made a hole in the wall. "I told you to bring her back! I told you to get her back here and now she's dead." He slammed his hands down on Vance's desk and looked him straight in the eyes. "That's on you."

Tony and McGee were both sitting silently at their desks when Gibbs came down the stairs. The whole floor was silent, no doubt having heard Gibbs's 'conversation' with Director Vance. "She was going to Lebanon on assignment." Tony said barely above a whisper. The only other sounds in the office being people typing on their computers and telephone rings going unanswered. "She was on a private plane, but the group she was following found the name she was traveling under and bombed the plane. Her body was so burned the only thing left were a couple of teeth they used to match to her dental records." Tony paused a moment. "It's not even a two and a half hour flight."

Gibbs offered no indication that he had heard anything Tony said, but the senior field agent knew his boss had heard every word. McGee looked up after a few more minutes of complete silence and cleared his throat. "Who ah . . . who's going to tell Abby?"

Tony slumped down further down in his chair and Gibbs – Gibbs tried his hardest not to look at the empty desk in front of him, but his eyes seemed to have a mind of their own. That desk was cursed. First Kate, now Ziva. If it was up to him, that desk would be incinerated at the first opportunity.

"Agent Gibbs!" Vance's voice boomed down the catwalk and covered every corner of the entire floor. "My office. Now!"

Gibbs pried his eyes away from the desk and looked around at his team. What was left of his team. "I will."

* * *

"Gibbs!" Abby flung open the door and jumped into Gibbs's arms. It has only been about a day and a half since she had been living in her new home and had last seen Gibbs and the rest of Team Gibbs minus one, but she missed them already. She squeezed her silver-haired fox as tightly as she could. She just wasn't . . . whole without them. There was something missing. "I missed you."

Gibbs gently pried Abby's arms from around his neck and led her back inside the house, taking a few seconds longer than necessary to shut the door behind himself to collect his thoughts and figure out exactly what he was going to tell the young woman before him.

"Sorry, no Caf-Pow here, but I have some coffee if you'd like some?"

Gibbs shook his head. "Not right now Abby."

"What's wrong?" Abby's elated mood immediately plummeted. Gibbs always wanted coffee, Gibbs could never get enough coffee. Gibbs without coffee was like her without Caf-Pow. The results weren't pretty. She had stocked up on Caf-Pows at NCIS before she left and was slowly weaning herself down. The day Gibbs refused an offer of coffee was the day . . . she thought for a minute. The day Gibbs didn't want coffee was the day . . . the day someone died. "Who died?"

"Let's sit."

Abby shook her head and took a step back, away from Gibbs. "Who died?"

"Abby."

"Damn it Gibbs just tell me. Who died?!"

Gibbs calmly walked over to Abby and led her to one of the chairs around the dining room table. He sat down next to her and took her hand. "There was an accident-a bombing." Gibbs corrected. It was no accident. "A plane-"

The tears starting falling with a force and Abby didn't even try to hold them back. She kept detailed tabs on her team so she knew none of them had been out of the office since she last saw them all, so that ruled any one of them being hurt out. The only other person who would warrant a trip from Gibbs was Ziva. It was all too much. Eighteen months with nothing, no contact and now this. '_Wait_' She thought; that wasn't exactly true. She needed a friend to help her through this. Without a word to Gibbs she got up and disappeared down the hall into what Gibbs assumed to be her bedroom for a few seconds before re-emerging with her new stuffed bear in her arms and sat back down.

"Abs…"

Abby looked out the window and hugged the bear close. She gave better hugs than Bert. "Just tell me Gibbs."

"I'm sorry Abby . . . Ziva was on that plane."

* * *

_Abby was fuming. She was hurt and felt like part of her had been ripped away, but most of all she was angry. Angry at Kate. "You said you would protect her!"_

_"I did Abby."_

_"How? Ziva is dead Kate. How is that protecting her? She is the most important thing to me in this world and you let her die."_

_"That's not fair."_

_Abby flung her arms up into the air and plopped herself down in the middle of a garden full of wilting black tulips that had, just yesterday, been full of life and color, standing tall against the breeze. Now they were dead and lifeless, being pelted by the rain that was falling down in waves. Abby tried to wipe the rain from her face and get her hair to stay out of her face, but she gave up. "Neither is the face that Ziva died and left me here alone."_

_Kate walked over and sat down next to Abby, the rain not touching a hair on her head. "First of all, you're not alone."_

_"It doesn't matter!" Abby got up and tried to put as much distance between her and Kate as she could. However, she rounded a large oak tree and there Kate was - still dry despite the torrential downpour, casually leaning against the tree. Abby sighed and slumped down on the other side of the tree. "What am I supposed to do?"_

_Kate walked around the tree and knelt down in front of the broken woman. "Trust me."_

_"I did." Abby looked deep into Kate's eyes and it dawned on her. If Kate was dead and she was seeing her... "I can't. No no no no. Kate, seeing you is one thing, but if I start seeing Ziva in these dreams I will lose it. It hurts. It hurts so much I . . . I can't breathe and if I start seeing her I'll-"_

_Kate reached over and drew Abby into her arms. Slowly, the rain stopped. The clouds parted revealing a bright, warn shining sun that put life back into the flowers and dried up the grass and everything until there was not a drop of water left except for the fountains. Kate pulled away and Abby was surprised that she herself was now completely dry. She ran a hand through her hair, which was down and reminded Abby of Ziva all the more. The Israeli loved it when Abby left her hair down and used to love to run her fingers through it. "Show off."_

_Kate smiled and nudged Abby with her shoulder. "Maybe a little."_

_Abby shook her head. "I know there's a reason for everything, but her death? . . I see no point in that. I just . . . it doesn't seem right."_

_Kate nodded. "I know."_

_"No, I mean it doesn't feel right – it doesn't feel real. I know this is going to sound crazy-"_

_"Abby, you're sitting here talking to someone who has been dead, buried and intimately involved in the decaying process for several years now."_

_"That's a nice visual Kate." Abby said with a chuckle._

_Kate shrugged. "When you're dead it doesn't matter anymore. The point is, crazy has been passed long ago. Tell me."_

_"It still …" Abby sighed. "It still feels like she's alive. It-I can't explain it, but I can feel her Kate."_

_Kate nodded. "What did I tell you the other day?"_

_"To take a break." She joked._

_Kate gave Abby a look. "I told you to trust your heart. What is it telling you?"_

_Abby sat still for a moment, listening to what her heart was telling her. She thought back to the new bear sitting beside Bert on her bed, and the note that came with it. "Paris." She said._

_Kate put her arm over Abby's shoulder and pulled the Goth close. "Then go." She kissed Abby on the forehead and stood up, holding her hand out to help Abby up. "What else did I tell you?"_

_Abby brushed herself off and suddenly remembered. "Not to believe everything I hear." Kate smiled at her and walked away, letting go of Abby's hand only once she was too far to hold it anymore. "What does that mean?" Abby asked, but Kate was gone. "Kate! What does that mean?"_


	12. Star Light, Star Bright

Abby finally gets to go to Paris! It's a bit of a shorter chapter, but it works.

A/N; I just want to thank-you all for sticking with me even though I didn't update last week. Last week was my final week of classes so I had so many papers and projects and presentations due it was just too hectic. But I just gave my last presentation this afternoon and only have 3 finals left which at only 2 hours a piece I have a lot more time now and thus you get another chapter.

Reviews are my inspiration people  
VillageVoice

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen, if I can ask you to fasten your seat belts and put your seats into the upright position, Air France flight 29 will be landing in Paris shortly."

Abby reached up and pushed her eye mask from her eyes and immediately brought it back down. This flight has been the earliest she could get out, and by that the lady behind the desk at the airport meant the earliest flight. Abby was not a morning person and waking up at 5:30 in the morning to extremely bright light squeezing in through other people's windows and attacking her retinas was not her idea of fun.

"Ma'am? Ma'am I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to ask you to put your seat up."

Abby groaned. "I'm going to over look you calling me 'ma'am' and consider it."

The flight attendant chuckled. "Not a morning person either?"

Abby took her eye mask off. "I think of it this way, the more I resist waking up the easier it will be for me to fall back asleep once I get to the hotel."

'Camille,' as her nametag read, reached over and pulled up the leaver to the seat. Abby groaned again. Lying down was much better suited to her plan. "Thanks." She mumbled.

The flight landed with minimal bumping and jostling and in one piece, which was pretty much the only criteria that Abby really had. She didn't check any luggage, so with the help of some guy who had sat in the row behind her, Abby was able to pry her overstuffed bag out of the overhead. He laughed when he saw the little skulls adorning the black bag and tried to stealthily slip his number into the front pocket. Too bad for him that the zipper was permanently stuck. Abby grabbed the bag away from him before he could try to physically hand the little piece of paper to her and was in a taxi headed to the hotel before he even made his way through customs. There were perks to being what some would think of as _'scary.'_

It was well into the afternoon when Abby finally ventured out of the hotel after quite a few hours of restless tossing and turning as she tried to sleep in the hotel room. The bed was quite comfortable, but sleep just would not come to the forensic scientist. She kept thinking about how this was supposed to be her and Ziva's vacation together. She spent even more time sitting on the balcony watching the sunset behind the Eiffel Tower before she decided Ziva wasn't going to magically appear and if she wanted to go to the Eiffel Tower she was going to have to do it by herself.

She opened her parasol and slowly walked the third of a mile to the Eiffel Tower. When she got there the stars were just beginning to fill the sky and the lights all over the city were turning on. Abby found herself an empty bench and closed her parasol, watching all of the couples enjoying being together in the most romantic city in the world. While she remained alone.

Before she knew it the last rays of the sun were gone and in their place a clear dark sky with so many stars twinkling and shining for everyone to see. As per her every night tradition Abby made a wish on the first star she saw. "Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight. I wish I may, I wish I might, have this wish I wish tonight" She looked away and thought for a minute. She knew it would never happen, but it was the only thing she truly wanted enough to ask. "Please little star, bring Ziva back. She can't be dead. I won't accept it. Pease bring her back." Abby looked away and looked over at the Eiffel Tower. "This would be so much better if you were here." She whispered into the dark as a lone tear slid down her pale cheek.

* * *

Tony looked around the room. There were a lot more people than he thought would be there. A lot more people than he thought Ziva even spoke to, let alone got to know in the few years she had been at NCIS. They had to move the memorial service to another location as the room they were supposed to be in wasn't large enough to fit everyone.

"It was a nice service." McGee said, breaking the silence of the group.

Gibbs turned to his agents. "It was."

"Abby would have liked it."

Gibbs nodded. "Probably."

"Good turn out." Tony said. "Ziva touched a lot of people."

"Always made sure to say good morning to the guard or the janitor. Chatted with the woman who runs the muffin stand downstairs." McGee added.

"She was a good agent." Gibbs said, watching as everyone filed out of the room. When the last person left he turned to Tony and McGee. "You guys should go home."

"If it's okay with you Boss I'd like to stay here. Get some work done." Tony quasi-asked.

"Me too Boss. We've been behind since . . ." McGee caught himself. "Since, you know."

Gibbs nodded. "Yeah I know McGee." At least in the office with him he could make sure his team didn't get any smaller. Kate, Ziva and even Abby. No one was going to be leaving his sight for a while to come. The only reason Abby was out of the country was because he didn't find out she was going anywhere until the plane was already well over the northern Atlantic and they wouldn't turn the plane around, and yes he had tried. In the matter of national security. Abby Sciuto was a world-class forensic scientist and without her many many, _many_ criminals were going to get away with their crimes. It was true, but they hadn't bought it. They would have, however, if it has come from the Director, but Gibbs knew there was no point in asking him. He settled by getting in touch with a contact in Paris and having him keep an eye on Abby. So far she had been staying in her hotel room untill late afternoon, doing some shopping until dusk and then sitting at the Eiffel Tower until sun rise to go back to her hotel room and start the process all over again.

It wasn't long before Gibbs, Tony and McGee were all in his basement sanding and hammering away on the boat while working on getting really, really drunk. More so on Tony and McGee's part than Gibbs's. Someone had to stay sober enough to watch out for the group. A task Gibbs was only too happy to take upon himself.

"What is it about NCIS and women?" McGee asked, not even noticing how much of his drink he spilled as he waved it around. "It would make a great science fiction novel. They all come in, but they never come out-go out. Well, they go out, only not alive . . . anymore. As they were when they went it."

Tony chuckled. "McGoo can't hold his alcohol Mr. Boss Sir."

Gibbs shook his head and put down the sandpaper. Instead picking up his cell phone and dialing the number off a piece of paper he has tacked up on his workbench.

_"Hello?"_ Came the groggy greeting.

"Hey Abs."

_"Gibbs! . . . Gibbs do you have any idea what time it is?"_

"Yeah. Do you?"

He heard shuffling as Abby moved around looking for the clock. She groaned. _"It's time for me to be sleeping."_

Gibbs rolled his eyes at Tony and McGee's arguing over what they should name Jenny's character in this new science fiction book McGee was planning that would surely be forgotten about by tomorrow. He walked around the other side of the boat. "Depressed Abby?"

_"Wouldn't you be?"_

Gibbs nodded. He would be and he had been. Two times with women he had been in love with, and another time when he lost his daughter.

_"Gibbs I'm on vacation. I'm allowed to sleep. Isn't a vacation about relaxing?"_

"Relaxing, yes. But the point of a vacation isn't to sleep Abs. It's to go out and see the place you're in. And you're nightly trips to the Eiffel Tower do not qualify."

_"I should have known you'd send someone to follow me."_

"There may be a guy in Paris who owes me a favor."

Abby sighed. _"I'm fine Gibbs. I'm dealing the only way I know how."_

"You let me know the minute you're not okay. Say the word and I'm on the next flight."

_"I'm okay Gibbs. Well I'm not, I mean I will be. But" _Abby sighed._ "I'm working on it."_

"Abby-"

_"And I promise to call you if things get really bad. How's my team doing?"_

Gibbs looked around the boat to see Tony holding McGee in a headlock and messing with his hair. "Oh, they're . . . being themselves. The Director had a memorial service for Ziva this morning."

_"I know. He told me about it before I left. I couldn't Gibbs."_

"It's okay Abs. I know."

_"I know too Gibbs. And I'm sorry."_

"I'm sorry too Abby. Stay in touch."

_"I will. Bye Gibbs."_

Gibbs shut his phone and walked back over to his workbench to get a new piece of sandpaper. He noticed one very important thing missing from his bench. "DiNozzo! What did I tell you about the superglue?"

Tony stopped from his position above McGee's head and capped the glue. "That the skin may not grow back Boss."

"Or the hair."

McGee looked up, grabbing the super glue from Tony completely oblivious that Tony was just about to squeeze massive amounts of it into his hair and make his little Probie McHairless. "Did I ever tell you guys the time …"

Gibbs smiled and walked over to Tony and McGee, giving each one a sharp slap to the back of the head.

It seemed to smack some of the drunk out of McGee, as he handed the bottle of superglue over to Gibbs. "I needed that. Wait, Tony what were you doing with the superglue?"

Tony scampered away and went back to his sanding. "Nothing McClueless. Nothing at all."

* * *

With Gibbs keeping tabs on her, Abby decided against throwing the blankets over her head and just going back to sleep. Instead, she got up and decided she would start off with some breakfast – well, lunch rather, and do some shopping. She heard from an older couple that sat at the bench next to her for a while last night that there were some cute little shops not too far from the hotel. With a quick call to her brother to see how her dog was doing, and her niece and nephews of course, she grabbed her parasol and headed out.

She walked along the streets of Paris thinking of the couple. She wondered how long they'd been together and what road blocks they had to face in their relationship. Probably not the same as she and Ziva with Ziva being in Mossad and all, but Abby was eager to learn the secrets of a successful relationship from those who has been there and done that. Now that she thought about it, the couple didn't seem all that much older than her parents. And she could swear that she had seen the man more than just last night. She stopped in the middle of the street and smiled. She looked around and sure enough - sitting on a bench on the other side of the street, the man smiled at her and tipped his hat. Abby waved and went along with her shopping. At least Gibbs's goon seemed nice enough. And his choice of costuming was intriguing.

There wasn't much shopping to be done really. She picked up some cute little things for the twins and Becca, and some souvenirs for Ducky, Palmer, McGee, Tony and of course Gibbs. After picking up a few things for herself she headed over to the Eiffel Tower to wait. But for what she didn't know. Her heart told her to be there and something was telling her to listen. So she was listening and sitting. A lot of sitting. All of that sitting has produced some really nice pictures though. As she waited she thought about the scrapbook she would make about the trip. She had picked up a scrapbook at one of the little shops she had visited. It had black and white pictures of Paris with a beautiful picture of the Eiffel Tower over the front and 'PARIS' in big, bold lettering. Although she hadn't been doing much of anything, so there wouldn't be much to put in the scrapbook, but she did have quite a lot of pictures. She tried to keep her thoughts as far away from Ziva as she could, but it was hard to do knowing that this was supposed to be their vacation, their pictures, their scrapbook. They were supposed to share Paris together.

Ziva was gone - really gone. As in never coming back, gone. Abby felt totally alone. She didn't have Tim or Tony or Gibbs or even Ducky anymore. With her new job she didn't get to see them every day. She knew that they would still always be there if she needed them, but it wasn't the same. It just wasn't the same. Everything was changing and this forensic scientist did not like it one bit.

_"Hey."_

_Abby looked up, more than a little surprised to see Kate walk over and sit down next to her. "Did I miss something?"_

_"You fell asleep."_

_Abby rolled her eyes. "Great. Very safe Abigail. Falling asleep in a strange city, alone, in the middle of the night. Not your brightest move."_

_"Don't worry. We've got you covered."_

_"I'm not even going to ask what that means because I know you won't tell me." Abby rubbed her eyes as she stifled a yawn. "Why am I so tired? I feel like I've done nothing but sleep since I've been here. And I'm still tired."_

_"Well one, because you've worked steadily since you were a teenager and that takes its toll. Especially working for NCIS. Your body got so used to being called in at early hours and going days at a time with little to no sleep and now it's all catching up to you. And two, you're depressed Abs." She wrapped her arms around the Goth. Abby laid her head on Kate's shoulder and closed her eyes. "With the new house, new job, leaving NCIS"_

_"And Ziva." Abby added sleepily._

_"And Ziva." Kate placed a soft kiss on Abby's forehead. "Get all the sleep you can now Abby. You're going to need it."_

Abby jerked awake. "Gah!" She muttered under her breath. "One of these days I am going to go to sleep and not wake-up with more questions than I went to sleep with." She stretched her arms out wide, wondering why as of late she has been waking up with Kate's voice in her head. Perhaps one day she would remember Kate coming to her in her dreams, but it was not time yet. For now all she had to know was the information Kate was telling her, not necessarily that it was coming from Kate.

Abby got up and started walking around, determined to wake herself up so that she didn't fall asleep again. It really wasn't safe for her to be falling asleep in the middle of Paris at night with who knows who and what out there. She walked away from the Eiffel Tower, noticing more and more stars as she got further away from the bright lights of the famous Parisian tower. She felt herself focusing on the first star she saw and whispering her nightly prayer to the stars, "Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight. I wish I may, I wish I might, have this wish I wish tonight. I know that I've been asking for the same thing every night for the past eighteen months and I know that it is an impossible thing, but she's all I want. I understand that you can't bring her back, so I don't even know why I'm asking, but please, if there is anything you can do…"

She sat down on a nearby bench and brought her long legs up to her chest to rest her head on her knees. "'If there is anything you can do.'" She repeated, mocking herself. "I'm a scientist. What do I really expect a star to be able to do about my problems? I know better than to ask anyone, let alone a star millions of light years away to resurrect the dead." She looked back up at the star, twinkling brightly above her head. She sighed and brought her head back to her knees. "Dammit Ziva! I need you here with me." She tried to blink away the tears, but they wouldn't be held back. "I need you here with me."


	13. Losing It

This has got to be one of my, if not my very, very favorite chapter I have written thus far. Also the longest, until the next chapter because that one turned out longer, but I didn't know that when I wrote this chapter, so yeah...Whoops. Anyway, hope ya'll enjoy.

VillageVoice

* * *

The days in Paris had come and gone and all Abby had to show for it were a ton of pictures of other people and the memories of some really weird dreams. She had waited and sat at the Eiffel Tower night after night waiting for something that never came, so she decided that tonight would be her final night at Eiffel Tower. In the morning she would fly home and figure things out from there.

"Bonjour mademoiselle. Would you like to go up into zee tower today? We are closing soon, but I think we could squeeze you in if you would like."

Abby smiled, looking up at the tower. "No, thank-you." The man nodded and went off in search of someone else. She had gone to the very top several times already. She would be good for the next few decades. Abby looked up at the tower one last time. "This is it." She turned and walked away, sitting down on the bench she had come to be quite good friends with in the past few days. She pulled out a book and made herself comfortable. "And now we wait."

Tonight, however, the old man/Gibbs's tracker goon and his 'wife' never showed up. In fact, there were not nearly half of the people there as there were in previous nights. Not that Abby minded. She generally liked being alone. As the sun went down and Abby could no longer read the words in her book, she put it aside and set herself with waiting for the first star to appear so that she could make her wish and leave.

The sound of someone laughing filled Abby's ears. She looked over her shoulder and saw a little girl with long dark curls spinning herself dizzy and laughing as she fell over and over. Abby couldn't help but laugh herself. It had been so long since she had gained so much pleasure from something so small. She turned to dig her camera out of her bag, but once she got it out the little girl was gone. Not a trace of her anywhere. Abby walked over to where she had fallen, but the grass wasn't even pressed. It was completely unaffected as if the little girl had never been there at all. With a sigh Abby returned to the bench. Maybe she was spending too much time sleeping. Her body wasn't used to it so it was interpreting the recent overindulgence of sleep as a toxin, making her see things that were not there.

"I am losing it."

"Do not be ridiculous Abby."

Abby sat up straight, a chill running up her spine. She felt someone sit down beside her, but didn't dare look for fear that this was about as real as the little girl.

"You never had it to begin with. . . Not that I even know what 'it' is."

Abby took a few deep breaths, but her eyes remained trained on an invisible spot straight ahead of her.

"Are you not going to look at me Abby?"

Abby shook her head. "You're not real. I've been getting too much sleep and not enough Caf-Pow and my brain is making me see and hear things that aren't there. First the little girl, and now you-"

"That little girl?" The owner of the voice asked and Abby turned her head slightly to see who she was talking about. Sure enough, there was the little girl she had seen earlier with long curly dark hair and a blue dress dancing and twirling around.

"She's real?"

"Yes. Her name is Cassandra. I spoke to her parents on the way here. They're from California, but Cassandra has not yet adjusted to the time difference, so they have spent much of the night trying to . . . tire her out, yes?"

Abby nodded slowly. "So if she's real, then . . . then that means that you're real?" She ignored the lone tear that slipped down her pale cheek. "But you're dead." She whispered.

Ziva smiled and brought her hand to Abby's cheek. "Do I feel dead Abby?"

Abby's eyes fluttered closed and she leaned into the touch. A few more tears fell, but she held them back as best she could. She wouldn't cry. She wouldn't cry because if this was a dream it would hurt too much to accept it as real and then learn the truth. "But you can't be real."

Ziva brought her other hand to the other side of Abby's face and forced the Goth woman to look at her. "I am real Abby. And I am alive. But if you wish, I can walk away and you can pretend that I am really dead and that this was nothing more than a dream or a product of too much sleep and not enough Caf-Pow."

Abby grabbed Ziva's wrist as the Israeli dropped her hand from the forensic scientist's cheek. She quickly wrapped her arms around Ziva and pulled her in as close as humanly possible. "No Ziva, don't go. Please don't go." She sobbed. "I can't lose you again, please"

Ziva removed Abby's arms from around her and wrapped her arms around the crying woman so that she was holding Abby instead. She held Abby close and rubbed soothing circles over her lower back. "Shh . . . I will not go anywhere Abby. I promise you." She placed a gentle kiss on the other woman's temple. "Shh…I promise."

They stayed like that for a long time, wrapped in one another's arms crying more tears than they thought they had enough water in their bodies to support. At some point it started to rain, but neither noticed. Too focused on the feel of the other in their arms and the feel of the other's arms around them. When they finally did pull away both were well near soaked, so getting out of the rain at that point wouldn't even matter.

"Why?" Abby questioned, looking deep into Ziva's dark eyes. They were just as she remembered. Cold and deadly when they needed to be, yet always warm and loving whenever she looked into them.

"I had to get away from Mossad. There was no other way but for me to die. I had to wait for the right time. My father rarely let me out of his sight for the first year I was back in Israel. This trip to Lebanon was the first time he was letting me travel out of the country for an assignment without a small group of guards. It was the perfect opportunity." She explained. "I am sorry that it took me so long Abby." She placed her hands on either side of Abby's face and pulled her in for a gentle kiss that quickly turned more passionate. Each pouring all the longing they had felt over the past eighteen months into the kiss. "I have missed you more than you can know."

Abby brought Ziva in for another kiss. This one slow, tender and loving. "Oh I know." She chuckled, leaning her forehead against the Israeli's. "I know. I never want to be away from you again Ziva David."

After a minute Ziva pulled away. "I am so stupid." She muttered under her breath.

"What? Why?" Abby questioned, not letting Ziva pull away too far. "What's wrong?"

"I should not have come here. It was selfish of me. I wanted to see you and I want more than anything for you to come with me, but you cannot."

"Why?"

"Because this is my mess and I must deal with it, but you Abby . . . you have a life and a family, friends, people who will miss you when you are gone. I do not. No one will miss me if I spend the next year or two on the run and in hiding." Abby tried to interrupt, but Ziva held up her hand. "It would be selfish of me to ask you to come."

"First of all, you didn't ask me." Abby stood up and took a few steps away from the bench. She turned back to Ziva. "And second of all, there is no way I'm leaving here without you or that you're leaving here without me. We do things together, remember?"

Ziva sighed. "I thought you might say that."

Abby backed away. "And I'm not going to eat or drink anything you give me so don't even think about drugging me again."

Ziva smiled. "I thought you might say that too."

"Then what are we going to do?" Abby asked with a shrug of her shoulders.

Ziva stood, grabbed Abby's face with her hands and brought the taller woman for a kiss that spoke volumes to the long months they had been apart. Abby pulled away when she could taste Ziva's tears through the rain and looked expectantly at Ziva. Ziva smiled and kissed Abby again. "I have missed you so much."

That was all it took for Abby to lose it . . . again. She brought Ziva back into the kiss until neither had anymore breath left in their body and then once they took a breath she brought Ziva back in until neither woman could stay that way any longer. She wrapped her arms tightly around Ziva's neck, burying her face in Ziva's hair and inhaling the familiar scent. "I love you."

Ziva wrapped her arms around Abby and pulled her close. "I love you too."

They stayed locked in each other's embrace for a few minutes more until curiosity got the best of Abby and she pulled back to look at Ziva. "Really though . . . what are we going to do?"

"I need to stay low for a while. Once things relax up?" She frowned, that didn't sound right. "Once things relax – rest . . . loosen, no . . . Once things-"

"Ease."

"Yes thank-you. Once things ease up I can return to-"

"We." Abby corrected.

"_We_" Ziva smiled. "We can return to America."

Abby nodded. "What do we do until then?"

Ziva took Abby by the hand and led her over to a nearby water fountain under a full tree that would protect them from the rain – not that it mattered as they were both already soaked through to the bone, and sat the Goth down on the edge. She pulled two passports out of her back pocket and handed one to Abby as she sat down. "Until then, we travel. You always used to say how you wished that you had the time to and now _we_ do." Abby opened the thin booklet and looked up at Ziva. "Of course I had to use a different name. Your identity is most likely under surveillance now as you were the closest relationship I had in America. They will want to make sure I really am dead and did not try to contact you."

Abby smiled and looked back down at the passport. "Kaitlyn Shepherd." She smiled up at Ziva. The Mossad agent had covered all her bases. Changed the spelling of both Kate's first name and Jenny's last name to dodge anyone who might be searching their names as possible aliases. "I'm not even going to ask how you got me an American passport."

Ziva chuckled. "It is best you do not. I would not want to tell you anything I would have to kill you for, Kate."

Abby smirked and took the other passport from Ziva's hand. "Sophia Rainier. Cleaver."

Ziva shrugged nonchalantly, taking back her passport. "I had to differ it slightly. Sophie Ranier was already a name I have used, and she is dead so that may have presented a slight problem."

Abby nodded. "Probably. At least you speak Spanish. I hardly think a Chilean passport would do you any good if you couldn't speak a word of Spanish."

Ziva smirked. "Si."

"Although Rainier is French."

Ziva shrugged and stood up, holding her hand out to Abby. "Good thing I speak French too then, yes?"

Abby laughed, a real full-bellied laugh she hadn't laughed in months. She took Ziva's hand and stood up. She placed a gentle kiss on Ziva's lips and looked deep into her dark eyes. "Yes."

Ziva pulled away. "I have one question. . . The babies?" Abby furrowed her brow in confusion. "I saw pictures of you and a man with two infants."

Abby smiled and laughed, leaning back in to wrap her arms around Ziva's neck. "Oh Ziva I so hope that is the biggest of our problems." She pulled back and quickly kissed Ziva before explaining. "The man is my brother. He and his wife just had twins and I've been spending a lot of time with them. Brian and I take Ryan and Brendan out so Jillian can have a break and spend some alone with Becca. Sometimes Becca comes, but not really. She isn't adjusting too well to the boys, so she gets to spend some alone time with her mom."

Ziva wrapped her own arms back around Abby. "I am so glad."

"Did you think I would do that to you?"

"No." Ziva shook her head. "But when I was in Israel with my father telling me these things I di not want to hear, never mind believe, day after day it is hard to not at least question things. We were so far apart and I had no contact with you. I am sorry Abby. For doubting you."

Abby shrugged. "Don't worry about it. I'd be lying if I said that I didn't imagine you in Israel or somewhere on a mission with someone else at least once or twice, hoping you weren't using sex as an interrogation technique. Especially since I know how good you are at it." She joked.

Ziva looked away and Abby's happy bubble burst. "Abby I had no choice." She apologized. No tears fell this time. In their place Ziva's eyes were dry, but cold. She was the hardened Mossad officer once again. "It was only once." She lowered her voice to barely above a whisper. "And I cried the entire time." She looked back up at Abby. "That is why I had to leave. I was given specific orders to sleep with the target I was headed to see in Lebanon. I could not do that to you." She turned away. "Not again."

Abby looked over at the river, the beautiful lights of Paris reflecting off its still waters. Ziva was here with her now - that was what mattered. That was all that mattered. Everyone has done things on the job that they didn't want to and weren't proud of. Just because Ziva's involved her sleeping with someone else didn't mean she wanted to nor that it meant anything. She did what she had to do to do her job and to survive. But that didn't mean it didn't hurt.

"If you want to go back to the hotel, grab your things and take your flight back home I will understand. No one ever has to know you saw me."

Abby wiped her face and took Ziva's hand. "I meant what I said." She began in a shaky voice. "There is no way I am leaving here without you." Ziva's façade fell and Abby took a visibly broken Ziva into her arms. She held Ziva as tight as she could as they both cried. "You did what you had to. You kept up this charade of being back with Mossad as long as you had to to be able to get away. If you didn't do it you wouldn't have had to fake your death because you would have already been dead."

Ziva nodded and pulled away, looking up at Abby. "I am so sorry Abby."

Abby reached over and wiped the tears from Ziva's eyes with the pads of her thumbs, bringing her swollen face closer until their lips touched in a barely there kiss. "Tell me how it happened."

Ziva pulled away took a deep breath. "I was in Russia on assignment. We were tracking this terrorist cell." She cut out a bunch of minor details. There was nothing to be gained by telling Abby how many people she had killed in that single afternoon. "We thought we had them all, but then there was one man we thought was in Germany, but he ah . . . he was not. We were in a warehouse . . . it was stupid. I should have gone back and rechecked everywhere." She sighed. "But I didn't. I . . . I didn't see him. He hit me over the head with something, I do not know what-"

"Wait," Abby interrupted softly . "You didn't do it willingly?"

"No. Did you think I would?"

Abby shrugged. "I-I don't know. I thought it was part of the job. Something you don't necessarily want to do, but you put a smile on and do it anyway."

"Trust me Abby" Ziva looked away. "I was not smiling."

"Were you…" Abby reached forward and took Ziva's hands. "Were you awake for any of it?"

Ziva nodded. "Most of it. I woke up and he was already . . . And I was strapped to the bed . . . I should have fought. Abby I am so sorry."

"Ziva stop saying that you're sorry. None of this is your fault. I should be saying I'm sorry for doubting you." She brought Ziva back into her arms and held her as tightly as she could. She should have known better than to ever doubt Ziva. Her heart broke for what Ziva had gone through. She pulled away and looked deep into Ziva's eyes. "I love you. You did what you had to do to survive, none of it is your fault and I love you." She kept repeating this to Ziva like a bad theme song, not stopping until Ziva had cried herself out and was finally starting to believe it.

* * *

"What are we going to do about Gibbs?" Abby asked, coming out of the bathroom once they had gotten back to the hotel room, showered - separately, and changed into dry clothes.

"_I_ am not going to do anything." Ziva replied as she sat down on the bed, rubbing lotion onto her legs.

"Ziva" Abby whined.

"Yes?"

"He's not just going to let me disappear. I'm his favorite." Abby said, plopping herself down next to Ziva on the bed.

Ziva chuckled and pulled Abby close. "Yes I know." Not that Abby was anywhere near complaining, but Ziva had never really been this touchy-feely. Now she couldn't go five minutes without touching Abby. As if reassuring herself that she was really there, that they were really together again. Eighteen months was a long time and Abby was beginning to realize it was a long time for someone to change. But as long as Ziva was in the cuddly mood the forensic scientist had every intention of taking full advantage of it.

Abby smiled. "Not your favorite, Gibbs's favorite."

"I know that too." Ziva chuckled again.

"Ziva?"

"Yes Abby?"

Abby snuggled into Ziva's embrace. "We really need to tell Gibbs."

"No." Ziva pulled away and faced Abby. "Under no circumstances is anyone to know that I am alive. It is too dangerous Abby. It could get both of us killed."

Abby chuckled. "As in really dead this time, killed?" She joked.

"Yes." Ziva replied in all seriousness.

Abby nodded and pulled Ziva back so that she could cuddle into her embrace again. "Okay." She began. "I won't tell Gibbs or McGee or Tony or Ducky, or anyone or . . . Gibbs." She sighed. "But I need to tell him something."

Ziva nodded in agreement. "He will be suspicious otherwise, yes?"

Abby nodded against Ziva's shoulder.

Ziva wrapped her other arm around Abby. "When is your flight?"

"In the morning." Abby yawned.

"Then you will call him in the morning, after your flight. Tell him you have decided to lengthen your trip to a few other countries, but you do not know which ones yet nor how long you will be away. Tell him that you will call him once a week to let him know how you're doing. Sound good, yes?" She looked down at Abby to see the forensic scientist sound asleep. She planted a gentle kiss on her hairline and answered her own question. "Yes."

* * *

"Gibbs!"

Gibbs moved the phone away from his ear a second too late. It sounded like Abby had her morning dose of caffeine already. He sat up and squinted across the room to make out the time on the clock. He groaned and attempted to rub some of the sleep from his eyes. _"Abby, do you have any idea what time it is?"_

Abby smirked. "Yeah. Do you?"

Gibbs smirked. _"It's time for me to be sleeping."_

Abby chuckled. It was just like Gibbs to throw her own words back at her. "How are my little Gibblets?"

He resisted asking that since they were Gibblets, wouldn't they be his and not hers? But it was too early and he would never, ever say 'Gibblets.' He stood up and tucked the rollaway bed he had slept on under his workbench and looked over at the two air mattresses by the stairs that McGee and Tony had occupied. They were empty, so he climbed the stairs and found his team, heads down in their coffee around the table. _"Oh, they're . . ."_

"Completely hung over?" Abby finished.

Gibbs looked at the two men before him. _"You talk to McGee last night?"_

"I talked to McGee last night."

Gibbs walked over to where the coffee pot sat on the counter and poured himself a cup. It was strong, just how he liked it. It wasn't Starbucks, but it would get rid of the pounding in their collective heads. _"Whats up Abs? Doesn't your flight leave soon?"_

Abby reached over and laced her fingers with Ziva's, taking whatever comfort from Ziva that she could with the fact that she was about to lie to her . . . to Gibbs. "It already left."

_"You're in the air?"_

"I missed the flight."

Gibbs took a sip of the coffee and coughed. Maybe it was a bit stronger than his original sip had indicated. Sure to knock the remaining alcohol out of anyone's system. _"When's the next one out?"_

"Actually Gibbs, I'm not coming back for a while. You know that I believe there is a reason for everything, and I wasn't-I'm not ready to go back yet."

_"You believe you missed the flight for a reason?"_ Gibbs asked, not sure he was understanding. More often than not it wasn't exactly easy to follow where Abby was going with things, especially after a night of drinking, albeit light drinking, and when he had barely touched his first coffee.

"Yes. It was a sign Gibbs."

_"A sign?"_ He questioned. He'd bite. _"A sign of what Abs?"_

"A sign that I shouldn't go back yet." Ziva kissed Abby's cheek and squeezed her hand. She knew how hard this was for Abby. "I'm going to spend more time traveling. There are quite a few countries I still want to see and I should do that now while I have the time. Because when I go back I start my new job and it could be a long time before I'm given the time off to do this again. I don't think I'll be able to do all the things I can now if I take this trip after I retire." She put her hand over the receiver and whispered to Ziva, "I hate doing this."

"I'm sorry. You can go back."

Abby squeezed Ziva's hand reassuringly. "I would hate living without you even more." She leaned over and gave Ziva a soft, quick kiss on the lips. "I'm sorry Gibbs, what did you say?"

_"I asked how long you're going to be gone."_

"Dunno yet. They said they would hold my job for me as long as I need." That was a lie. She had actually called her would-be boss and left a message on his machine saying that she was going to need more time than the few months they had discussed. In all probability he would call her back saying they couldn't hold her job that long and she would be fired. Not like she particularly cared. She knew almost from the beginning that she couldn't take the job. Something in the back of her mind told her it wasn't a right fit for her. What she was doing now was.

Gibbs nodded slowly. _"Any idea where you're going to go?"_

Abby looked over at Ziva who shrugged her shoulders. "Not a clue." She said with a smile. "It's freeing, being able to go wherever I want whenever I want and for however long I want. I mean, I'll miss everyone; you, Tony, McGee, Ducky and even Palmer, and my brother, my niece, my nephews…" She trailed off. Actually sitting down to think about it she realized there were a lot of people she was going to miss. But it wasn't going to be anything like the eighteen months she had gone without the love of her life. "But I'll call – once a week, at least, if I can, and let you know how I'm doing."

That's when Gibbs figured it out. _"Sounds like you've thought of everything Abs."_ He said, taking another sip of his coffee. It always took at least half a cup for him to be able to think clearly. And now that he had had that, he was.

"Of course Gibbs. I always make sure I've covered all my bases."

_"Yeah." _He admitted. She did, but this did not sound like her work. Abby dealt with the science and computers and evidence. This sounded more like the work of a certain Israeli member of his team. _"Tell Archangel I say to stay safe."_

Ziva and Abby's eyes locked. "Bye Gibbs."

_"Stay safe Abby."_

"Always do." She carefully put the phone back on its cradle and turned to Ziva. "Now what do we do?"

"Now," Ziva began, pulling Abby with her as she stood. "We get another hotel room on the other side of the city-"

"Or the country."

Ziva raised an eyebrow. "Can you wait that long?"

Abby shook her head. Had last night not been such an emotional night, they may have been able to do more than pass out completely wrapped within each other's arms. But it had been, and thus they did not. But tonight, after a most restful night of sleep, was another story.

"We get a hotel room on the other side of the city and we stay there for the rest of the week, yes?"

Abby's face lit up. "There is nowhere I would rather be." She drew Ziva's face down to hers and kissed her with a passion that was more but a hint of what was to come. When she pulled away she looked deep into Ziva's dark, clouded eyes and smirked. She grabbed her bag with one hand and Ziva's hand with the other. It would be a miracle if they made it to the hotel.

* * *

A/N: See, I couldn't let ZIva just die. That would be a very bad Zabby story. lol. If you liked it feel free to review and just maybe I'll add a little Christmas surprise later this week!


	14. Figuring it Out

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! Or if you don't celebrate Christmas, then HAPPY WHATEVER HOLIDAY YOU DO CELEBRATE! I hope everyone has a fun and safe Holiday! Longer chapter, but it all seemed to fit together so I couldn't break it up. Flashback in _italics._

VillageVoice

* * *

Abby's newest hobby was scrapbooking. She and Ziva were visiting a lot of different cities in a lot of different countries and since they were trying to lie low, there was a lot of time spent in their hotel rooms. They spent a lot of that time in bed re-familiarizing themselves with each others' bodies, and for the first few weeks it seemed as if neither could get enough of the other. But all honeymoon periods fade, and while they were still madly in love with one another, they no longer felt the need to have sex three or four times a day. Once a day was sufficient, but weekends however, were fare game.

With so much free time Abby had become religious with her scrapbooks. She bought a new scrapbook in every country they visited. At first she had started out with every city, but then some cities didn't have scrapbooks, or didn't have scrapbooks with their names on them and sometimes they only spent a day or two in a city and since being on the run required traveling as light as possible, Abby had ditched the city idea, as well as the city scrapbooks she had already bought and started making a single scrapbook for each country they visited. With the exception, that is, with Paris. Because much like Gibbs and Jenny, they would always have Paris.

Just as she was about to dig out her new cell and call Ziva the lock turned and the Israeli walked into the hotel room holding up a brown paper bag.

"You got them?"

Ziva leaned down for a kiss and handed Abby the bag. "I got them."

Abby squealed in delight and dug into the bag, tearing through the envelope inside to get to the photos within. She caught Ziva's hand as the former Mossad officer walked back from hanging up her jacket and pulled her onto her lap so that Ziva was now straddling her thighs. Ziva smiled and brought Abby in for a long, slow kiss. "I miss you when you're not here."

"You were the one who wanted me to go get the pictures developed so that you could put them in your scrapbook, yes? It is not my fault that I did not know how to use the . . . photo maker machine." It was too dangerous to give the memory card to anyone to develop, so that left Ziva with the task of using one of the little photo machines to print them out herself. That machine was lucky that she had not been armed.

Abby smiled and leaned in for another kiss. "I love you, you know that?"

Ziva let her arms slide around Abby's neck as she played with the Goth's hair, which had been left down for her benefit. "I do. And you know that I love you too, yes?"

"Yes." Abby smiled. Now that Ziva was back she actually had someone to take pictures of and with. Although they were very pretty, it was a lot better than the pictures she took of trees and flowers, buildings and other people during her time alone in Paris. "You want to help me with it?" She did one city at a time, not going out to take pictures in a new city until the previous one's photos had been but into the scrapbook and created into brilliant pages full of life. They were heading to a new city tomorrow, so she had to get these pictures put in tonight.

"I always do, yes?"

"Yeah, but I didn't know if you had something else to do."

Ziva looked around the hotel room, still from her perch on Abby's lap. "Like what Abby?"

"I don't know – Ziva David do not sass me."

Ziva chuckled. "Sorry." She kissed Abby one last time and swung her leg over so that she could get off her lap. "I am just going to take a shower and then I will help."

"Okay." Abby nodded, turning back to the pictures. Her hair was still soaking wet from the shower she had taken while Ziva was out. "I'll sort through them and we can start when you're done."

Ziva locked the door behind herself and turned the water on, undressing as she waited for the water to warm up. It was getting harder and harder to hide this from Abby. She stepped under the warm water and slowly brought her hands to her stomach. It was nothing anyone would notice, but she could and that was enough. The longer she waited the more she knew it was going to hurt Abby. That was the last thing the ex-Mossad Officer wanted to do.

She knew that Abby tended to be a little over emotional - okay, so everyone who knew Abby for longer than three minutes knew that Abby was a highly emotional person. Ziva took her time toweling herself off to give herself some more time to think of what to say. She cursed her years of training for not allowing her to take more than a six minute shower.

"Hey Ziva you okay in there?" Abby put the photographs down and walked toward the bathroom. She turned the handle, but the door was locked. "Zi, what's going on?"

Ziva took a deep breath. "Nothing." She opened the door with a smile on her face, still toweling off her hair. "Is everything alright?"

Abby was confused. She was very in tune with people and their emotions and she could plainly see that something was wrong no matter how well Ziva thought she was hiding it. However, she also knew that pushing the Israeli about it when she wasn't ready wouldn't benefit anybody. "Yeah. I just . . ." She looked at Ziva and felt the former Mossad officer grow uncomfortable under her gaze. They both knew that Abby could see right through her. But they also knew that she would wait for Ziva to tell her. "I was wondering if you wanted to go out and get some dinner, but now I have a feeling that we should maybe call room service and order in?"

Here was her choice. Abby was offering to talk. If Ziva chose not to talk now then Abby wouldn't bring it up again until Ziva did. Just like she had offered to talk after Lt. Sanders had died, she would mention nothing of it again until Ziva came to her. Ziva had kept it a secret long enough. She slowly nodded.

Abby smiled sympathetically and reached for Ziva's hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. She knew Ziva wasn't good at talking about things, but she was learning and Abby was more than willing to be her teacher. She left Ziva at the doorway and walked into the sitting room to grab the menu.

When Ziva could hear Abby ordering their dinner she crept over into the bedroom and over to the closet where her jacket was hanging and grabbed the small bag out of her pocket, quickly returning to the bathroom and relocking the door behind herself. Abby wouldn't talk to her again until their food arrived, so the Israeli had time. Abby would make sure Ziva had time to collect her thoughts and figure out what to say.

The test was done about half an hour before the food arrived, but Ziva remained in the bathroom until Abby called her. Same result, same problem. Only this problem was now 1/3rd of the way into being. She'd been hiding it from Abby for two months, but it was time for that all to end. She walked into the sitting room where the table was and sat down across from Abby. The past two months had been amazing for both of them despite being constantly on the move, but it was time to face the music.

There can never be too much good, Ziva remembered. It shifts the balance too much to one side and builds up the bad behind an invisible wall that just waits for the perfect opportunity to come crashing down. It was better to talk about the bad as it came, thus maintaining the balance. She knew in her heart that if she had waited any longer Abby would leave her. She was sure of it. Although she was having a hard time believing that Abby would want to stay with her no matter when she told her. It was her pessimistic Mossad training. Never trust anyone, prepare for the worst, let go…

"We need to talk." She began.

Abby put her fork down and gave Ziva her full attention. "I just want to tell you I'm not going anywhere. Even if you're here to tell me that you're leaving me," She chuckled; she knew it wasn't that. "You will have a pretty hard time of doing it because I'm not going to let you. I'm very likely to handcuff myself to you – even though I know you learned how to get out of them on like your first day of junior Mossad training camp or whatever when you were like ten" She joked. "I will find a way. Even if that seems all stalkerish, which thinking about it now, it does, but what can I say." She smiled, ending her rant. "You're stuck with me."

"I am not leaving you." Ziva looked down at her hands for a second, gathering strength, then back up at Abby. "Although when I tell you you will want to leave me."

Abby shook her head and moved her chair next to Ziva, reaching out to take her tanned hands in her own pale ones. "Never going to happen." She reached up and brushed the damp hair from Ziva's face. "You could tell me that on the way back from the picture place you killed twenty-five people and I would still love you. I would still stay. I would be pissed, but I would still love you and want to be with you."

"I'm pregnant." Ziva blurted out.

Abby nodded. "You could tell me that too and I would still stay."

"No, Abby." She reached into her pocket and showed Abby the positive pregnancy test. "I am pregnant."

Abby took the test and sat back in her chair. "Oh." She stared at the test. "How long have you known?"

"Two months."

Abby put the test down in front of her, her eyes still not able to leave it. "You've going two months knowing you're pregnant without anything? We need to get you prenatal care and there are vitamins, we have to schedule an appointment for tests to make sure that nothing is wrong with the baby-"

"Abby stop." Ziva took the test and put it off to the side out of Abby's sight.

"Have you even had an ultrasound?"

"Abby!" Ziva warned. While Abby was great at getting people to talk about their issues, she was also the queen of avoiding her own. Ziva being pregnant was both of their issue. However foreign a concept it was for her, Ziva needed to get Abby talking about how she was feeling and away from the topic of Ziva's lack of prenatal care.

"What Ziva? What do you want me to say?" She stood up and moved about the room. Walking around always helped Abby process things."You're pregnant."

"I am sorry that I did not tell you. We were happy, yes?"

Abby looked at Ziva and nodded. "We _are_ happy." She continued pacing.

"It was another selfish action on my part. I wanted you all to myself and if I told you this it would have ruined that. I didn't want to start off our time like that. It was worse enough telling you about what happened in Russia."

"Bad enough." Abby corrected.

"Yes, thank-you. It was bad enough."

Abby folded her arms over her chest and stopped a few yards in front of Ziva. "Is the baby from the . . . the rape?"

"Yes." Ziva replied not even trying to hide the irritation in her voice. "That was the only time." She couldn't help being irritated. She had told Abby she did not have sex with anyone with the exception of what happened in Russia. She was supposed to be the one with the trust issues, not Abby.

"I'm sorry. It's just . . . you're pregnant Ziva."

"I found out the day I left Israel. Somehow my father found out and that was the last . . . stick- pencil, no . . . wood . . . hay?"

"Straw."

"Yes. It was the last straw. I didn't know what to do. I was alone and I was pregnant, from a . . ." Ziva bowed her head in shame. She was Mossad. She'd used sex as an interrogation technique, had sex with people she hadn't wanted to and even been forced a couple of times. But this was the only time that was refusing to let go. Ziva had learned pretty much right away how to cut herself off emotionally when she had sex to further a mission or an assignment, but the fact that she was currently carrying a child from one of these sex acts was throwing her into the deep end with a bunch of sharks waiting and no escape. It was refusing to let her cut herself off when that was all she wanted to do. "I was hoping it would all go away. That I would lose it and the decision would be made for me. It was stupid."

Abby walked over and sat back down in her chair next to Ziva.

Ziva bit her lip. She tried not to cry, but her body was not cooperating. "I was alone. I didn't know-"

Abby swallowed back her own tears and took Ziva in her arms. "Shhh, sweetie it's okay. We'll figure it out. You're not alone anymore. You're not alone."

"I couldn't have an . . . abortion. I couldn't. I made an appointment right after I found out, but I couldn't." She sobbed into Abby's strong arms. "Why can I so easily put a gun to someone's head and pull the trigger ending their life, yet I couldn't kill something that does not yet technically exist?"

"Because that something is a part of you Ziva."

"I am a trained assassin, a killer trained to act and not think."

Abby ran her hand along Ziva's damp, curly hair and placed a kiss on her forehead. "Not anymore you're not. You left Mossad and that life behind when you faked your death. But you are also a woman Ziva. This isn't something for Ziva the former Mossad agent." She brought her hand under Ziva's chin and guided her face up. "This is something for you, Ziva David, the woman I know and love."

"How can you still love me?"

It broke Abby's heart to hear Ziva saying such things. "I will always love you Ziva David." She kissed Ziva and pulled the former Mossad back into her arms. "We'll figure it out."

* * *

"Abby what are we doing?"

Abby pushed Ziva through the door. "We are figuring it out."

"By doing what, exactly?"

Abby pushed her into the elevator and pressed the button for the seventh floor. "We are getting you an ultrasound."

Ziva immediately jammed down on the emergency stop level. It was a habit. "It is too dangerous."

"Ziva, we have fake identities. _And_ I called and booked you in under a different name than the other different names we're already using. We're leaving this city after the appointment anyway. What's the harm?" Ziva paced around the elevator. Abby reached out an arm and stopped her. "You need to see this baby. It will help you bond."

"What if I do not want to bond?"

Abby let out a slow breath. "Well then, if you're planning on giving the baby up for adoption-"

"I am not planning anything."

"I'm just saying that it would help to monitor the baby. To make sure that everything okay, that it's healthy. No matter what you're planning to do."

Ziva considered her words for a minute. She didn't want anything she did or didn't do to harm the baby. She flipped the switch back up. "One ultrasound. No tests or anything that would leave any trace that we were here. And once we get the picture I expect you erase all the information from the machine and the computer while I steal the file."

Abby smiled. Partly because Ziva wanted a picture of the baby and partly because she was actually doing something kind of like her work at NCIS. There was no evidence, no forensics or anything requiring processing, but there was a computer to be hacked and information to be deleted. And she would take it. She wrapped her arms around Ziva and squeezed as tight as she could without causing harm to the woman before her. "I thought you'd never ask."

* * *

"Many first time mothers also notice some difficulty with their emotions. More intensity to your feelings, many experience what we call 'the weepies' where they find themselves crying a lot more than is normal for them."

It clicked. "That is why I have been crying!" Ziva exclaimed. "That was not like me, I said it."

Abby nodded. "She did."

"This isn't going to last the entire time is it?" Ziva asked.

"Unfortunately there is no cure for that and as cruel as it sounds, you're just going to have to learn to manage. It's the hormones. Hopefully your body will get used to them as you get further into your pregnancy, but there is always the chance you won't. And as a first time Mom everything is new and unknown so it tends to confuse your body more than it would a mother who already has a child or two, although they can still experience such things."

Ziva rolled her eyes. "Fantastic." Abby rubbed Ziva's arm and offered her a smile.

"I sent the prescriptions for your prenatal vitamins down to the pharmacy as you asked." He began as he put his palm pilot away and rolled himself over to the ultrasound machine. "And if I can just ask you to lift up the gown, we can get a picture of your baby."

Abby was the first to see the baby. Ziva was looking in the other direction, right at Abby as she watched the reaction play out across the scientist's face. As a tear slid down the Goth's pale cheek Ziva reached up to brush it away. Abby took Ziva's hand in her own and placed a kiss on her knuckles, looking at Ziva until the Israeli slowly turned her head toward the monitor.

"Okay, first I am measuring how long your baby is and judging by that I am estimating that you are just entering your thirteenth week of pregnancy. Does that sound correct?" He looked over at Ziva.

Ziva took the hand Abby wasn't holding and wiped her eyes. She nodded. "Yes."

"Now there are a battery of other tests I am going to perform-"

"Tests?" Ziva looked at Abby alarmed. "What tests?"

The good doctor thought nothing unusual of the new mother's reactions. They heard test and automatically thought something was wrong. He chalked it up to that. "Just a few things that need to be checked for between the eleventh and thirteenth weeks and some that need to be checked between the tenth and fourteenth weeks. You have come at the perfect time."

Ziva relaxed and just stared at the monitor. The doctor was talking and explaining the measurements he was taking of the baby for the tests; one was used to detect genetic problems, another was checking the collection of fluid beneath the baby's skin in the area under the baby's neck to check for a plethora of chromosomal abnormalities, also one checking the spine to detect any serious case of spina bifida, there was another one checking for a visible nasal bone, one measuring the femur to detect any chance of chromosomal trisomy, and a bunch of other tests measuring the baby's head, its brain, heart and lungs and other vital organs, but Ziva wasn't listening to him. She was too wrapped up in the tiny life on the screen. Abby was into the science, so Ziva was sure that she would remember every little detail. That and the doctor was writing everything down on the chart she was going to steal later.

"If you would like to know the gende, the baby is in the perfect position."

"You can tell the gender this early?" Abby asked, clearly amazed with the machine.

The doctor nodded. "With modern equipment it is possible to find the gender as early as eleven weeks."

"No." Ziva interrupted. "I do not want to know."

"Okay." He turned back to the machine and went to write the sex down on the chart.

"And can you please not write it down on the chart? I do not want to be tempted to look."

He nodded and went back to the screen to measure something else. "Nice thick umbilical cord."

Ziva turned to Abby. "It looks so real." She whispered.

Abby chuckled. "It is real."

"No, I just . . . I didn't think it would look so . . . real." She turned back to the screen. "There's really a baby in there."

"You are hardly showing, but don't be surprised if you wake up one morning in the near future and it looks like you've swallowed a small watermelon. A lot of women just 'pop.'" The doctor said.

"Oh look, its sucking its thumb." Abby pointed out with a smile.

The doctor quickly pressed a few buttons. "I'll have that printed in no time." He handed Ziva a towel to wipe the gel off her belly and stood up. "This printer here isn't working so I'll just go pull the pictures up in another room and print them out. I'll be but a minute."

They waited until the door was shut to spring into action. Abby ran to lock the door, but there was no lock. "What kind of door doesn't have a lock?" Not knowing how much time they had and not wanting to be caught Abby sat down in front of the computer and started typing.

Ziva grabbed the file off the desk and shoved it into her bag, zipping it shut and putting it back down beside the exam table she was laying on. "How's it going?"

"He just printed the ultrasound pics, so I am deleting . . ." Her fingers were going a mile a minute. "Right-"

"Abby he's coming."

Abby whipped around just as the door opened.

The doctor walked in and handed the small black and white pictures to Ziva. Then he looked confused. "It seems that I have misplaced your chart."

"You took it with you when you left." Abby said, looking over at Ziva with a wink.

"Oh. Then I probably left it in the other room. Why don't you get dressed Ms. Todd and then I will meet you and your sister in my office in a minute." He turned and walked back out the door.

"That was close." Abby breathed a sigh of relief and turned back to the computer. A couple of keystrokes later she was done. Then she moved to the ultrasound machine and even though she had never worked with an ultrasound machine before, it was not hard to delete Ziva's name and all of the pictures. All of the measurements had been written down in the chart, so there was no need to keep all the pictures or print them out. They had the really cute ones the doctor had printed out. "Done."

Ziva slipped her shirt over her head. "Me too." She stuffed the hospital gown into her bag alongside her chart. They could leave absolutely no trace that they had ever been there. "The prescription."

"Ready in the pharmacy, but other than the actual bottle I deleted every trace."

Ziva kissed Abby. "We make a pretty good team."

Abby wrapped her arms around Ziva's neck and laughed. "That's what I've been trying to tell you."

* * *

Abby slipped into the hotel room as quietly as she could. Thirteen weeks with no nausea or vomiting at all. Three days on the prenatal vitamins and that seemed to be all Ziva could do. For now she was sleeping soundly and Abby tried her best to be quiet. Ziva was also getting really bad headaches which were preventing her from sleeping, so Abby was determined to be quieter than a mouse. But as much of a night owl as she was, it was hard to move around in the unfamiliar, pitch-black room.

_"Maybe you should stop taking the pills."_

_"I want to do what is best for the baby."_

_"Yeah, well, whats best for the baby probably doesn't include you throwing up all the time."_

_Ziva pulled away from the toilet bowl and took a deep breath. "Perhaps it is just late morning sickness."_

_"Or maybe it's the pills." Abby insisted._

_Ziva took another deep breath and took the bottle of ginger ale Abby was holding out and took a tentative sip. Their conversation ended as she was overcome with an overwhelming urge to throw it right back up."_

"I missed you."

Abby turned toward the bed. "I'm sorry. I was trying to be quiet."

"You were." Ziva said, laying still on the bed and not even opening her eyes. She found a position in which her headache and nausea was gone, so she was quite content to spend the next few months in that very spot. "I was very thoroughly trained."

"I'm sorry." Abby apologized again, carefully taking the things out of the bag so that the wrinkling of the bag did not make too much noise. "How are you feeling?"

Ziva slowly opened her eyes, locking them on Abby's across the room. "Something's missing."

Abby was on it. "What do you need? I just got Ginger Ale and crackers and-"

"Abby." Ziva interrupted.

Abby stopped. "Yeah?"

"Come here."

Abby set the Ginger Ale and crackers aside and walked over to the bed.

"Take off your shoes."

Abby chuckled, but took off her shoes all the same. Then she crawled in behind Ziva and gathered the Israeli in her arms. "Better?" She asked.

Ziva melted into Abby's arms. "Yes."

"I picked up something else while I was out."

"Hmm?"

"I got the baby a scrapbook."

Ziva smiled, but sleep was calling her so that was as much of a reaction as she could give.

"We don't know what the baby is, so it's light blue with a yellow duck in the center and lots of bubbles all over." She looked at Ziva's sleeping form in her arms and closed her own eyes. They hadn't seriously talked since the night Ziva told her she was pregnant and Abby hadn't expressly told her, but they were in this together. "I'm here for you Ziva. We'll get through this together."

Ziva moved within Abby's arm, turning so that she was facing Abby. Sleepily she leaned up and placed a soft kiss on Abby's lips and snuggled deeper into her embrace. "Thank-you."

* * *

"Am I being selfish?"

"Uh," Abby pulled the covers down and turned on her side to face Ziva. "What do you mean?"

"Am I being selfish having this baby? We don't get to go around telling all our friends, we don't get to paint a nursery, who knows how long we are going to have to keep moving. Is it selfish bringing an innocent child into this?"

"I think that all this baby really needs is you. I think all any child really needs is their mother. And yeah, when he or she gets older it would probably be a good idea for us to settle down somewhere, but we have time. Maybe someplace warm. Ooh, maybe on the beach. But far enough away from the water so that, you know, it's not dangerous for the baby. Or in the woods. I love the woods. Less chance of nosey neighbors or passerbys if you're surrounded by hundreds of trees. Children are amazingly adaptable."

Ziva pinned Abby to the bed, swinging her leg over to straddle the Goth woman and brought her own lips down to meet Abby's. She was feeling much better this morning. "We'll figure it out, yes?"

Abby reached up with one hand on either side of Ziva's face and brought the Israeli's lips back down to hers. "Oh yeah."

* * *

A/N: I wasn't originally planning to turn this into a baby fic, but I like babies and I like baby fics. I work with little ones, so it's only natural I can't get them out of my mind. My muse likes them too. She thinks they're cute, but likes them much better in fics than in real life. She thinks they're too noisy in real life - which is sometimes true. However, since she gave me this idea and she tends to go on week or even month-long vacations if I don't listen to her I just went with it. Hope ya'll enjoyed this chapter!


	15. Daddy and Grandpa

My longest chapter yet. Hope ya'll like!

VillageVoice

* * *

"I hope it is a boy." Ziva stated one night as she and Abby were lying on the couch in a hotel room in Barcelona. She and Abby had spent the past four months traveling throughout the countries from Europe to Asia to Canada to South America to Africa and back to Europe again. They had been in Barcelona for over a week. Longer than they had stayed in any country thus far and were relaxing on the couch after a long day spent at the beach. They didn't go out much, but when they did they liked to make the day out of it. Four months later they still only went out at night and for short periods of time during the day, but once in a while they simply had to get out.

Ziva was lying on her back while Abby was on her side between Ziva and the back of the couch. The expecting mother was running her hand subconsciously back and forth across her protruding abdomen as the forensic scientist was lying against her yet completely engrossed in some subtitled forensic show.

Abby pried her eyes away from the TV screen. "Why is that?" She asked.

Ziva placed a soft kiss on Abby's lips. "I am not good with girls. They cry-"

"Zi, no matter what the baby is it's going to cry."

"That is not what I mean. Girls get . . . emotional and when they get like that there is no reasoning with them."

Abby grabbed the remote off the armrest and turned off the TV, looking down at Ziva "There is no reasoning with any child until they get to be about twenty anyway. And sometimes even not then." She joked.

"That is not what I mean either."

Abby brought a hand to cup Ziva's face and bring her dark eyes to meet Abby's own light. She used her other hand to stop Ziva's hand from rubbing her belly. "You see what you're doing there? You're protecting the baby. It's not even born yet and you are already protecting it. You already love this baby Ziva. Everything else will come."

Ziva laced her fingers with Abby's. "What if-"

"No 'what ifs' Ziva. You are going to be an amazing mother, I know it."

"How do you know it Abby? My mother died when I was fifteen, and my father . . . How do you know Abby?"

Abby smiled. "Because I know you - and you are not your father. I see you when you don't think I'm looking, talking to the baby or rubbing your belly even when you don't know you're doing it. I also know you keep tabs on me wherever I go." Ziva looked away guiltily. Abby wasn't meant to know that. Her impending motherhood and time away from Mossad and NCIS were making her skills a bit rusty. "It doesn't bother me Ziva." The Israeli looked back at her. "I love that you want to make sure that I'm safe, as I know you will do the same with the baby too. If you ever let it out of your sight." The Goth joked and pulled Ziva in for a kiss. "Your father didn't protect you Ziva. He threw you right in the middle of things and made you find your own way out. The fact that we are where we are right now shows that you are nothing like him." She brought Ziva in for another kiss. "You're going to make an amazing mother."

Ziva smiled. What Abby had been saying the past few months was finally starting to kick in. "You think so?"

Abby smiled back. "I do." As if to voice its own little opinion, the baby gave a couple of kicks for good measure. "And what's more important, the baby thinks so too."

Ziva furrowed her brown in confusion. She had been so intently listening to what Abby was saying she hadn't even noticed the baby beginning to move. Abby pressed Ziva's tanned hand down over her belly so that she could feel the tiny baby's light kicks against her palm. It brought tears to the hardened officer's eyes. She looked down at her belly. "Hi little baby"

Abby smiled. They were going to be just fine together, just the three of them.

After a few seconds Ziva sighed and leaned back against Abby.

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know. I just …" Ziva fumbled, trying to find the right words to say. "This is not a baby conceived under the best of circumstances, not even good circumstances, what if-"

"I am going to ban 'what if' from your vocabulary. Ziva, this is your baby-"

"_Our_ baby." Ziva corrected.

Abby smiled. "_Our_ baby. We are going to raise it and influence it. The only thing the baby has from its father is some genes." She scoffed. "So what? Nurture over nature."

Ziva smiled and wrapped Abby's arms around her, snuggling deep into the Goth's embrace. "Nurture over nature."

"Do you know what that means?"

"I do not. But I don't need to." She leaned up and kissed Abby. "It sounds good." She looked down at her belly. "Doesn't it baby?"

Abby chuckled and wrapped her arms around Ziva. "I've been thinking." She began.

"We're in trouble now." Ziva whispered down to her belly.

Abby feigned hurt for about a nanosecond. "I resent that. But anyway," The moment passed and she continued right along. "I was thinking that since Gibbs knows that you're alive anyway that maybe I could tell him about the baby."

"Gibbs knows what?"

"Did I not tell you about that?"

"No you did not." Ziva answered as she swung her legs over the side of the couch and sat up.

Abby sat up and scooted next to Ziva. "It's Gibbs! Gibbs knows everything."

"Abby." Ziva sighed.

"I swear I didn't tell him. He just knew."

Ziva smiled sadly and brought her hand to the side of Abby's face. "I know." It was dangerous for anyone to know that she was alive. From the beginning it had been her and Ben, but Ben had been killed in the accident that supposedly killed Ziva David. That was not in the plan and Ziva knew better than to believe in coincidences. Her gut told her that he had gone with her on his own suicide mission, but for what reason she didn't know. Then she revealed the secret to Abby and now Gibbs knew too. Anymore people and they were in for some serious trouble. Abby had no idea what would be done to her if Mossad found out she had deserted and faked her own death. But she also knew that the two people who knew would never tell anyone under any circumstances. Ziva didn't trust easily, but she trusted them. "It's not your fault. I should have known he would figure it out."

"Yeah." Abby crossed her arms over her chest and nodded. If Ziva should have known than it was clearly not her fault. "You should have."

Ziva felt like she was being chastised by her mother. It was looking more and more as each day passed, that Abby was going to end up being the disciplinarian to the future child she was carrying and Ziva was going to be the one who said yes to everything. Abby did have the guilt trips down pat. Deep down inside Ziva had a feeling they would both be 'yes' parents. The baby just kept looking cuter and cuter with every ultrasound they had. It was tricky, having an ultrasound once a month in different cities and countries, but Abby had made sure that the appointments had been made and gone to. If Ziva was an insecure person she may have begun thinking that Abby was going to make a better parent than she. Abby had more experience with babies and children and the forensic scientist always seemed to have the right answer and say the right things. But slowly, day by day, Abby was convincing Ziva that any child would be lucky to have her as a parent. And little by little, Ziva was starting to believe her.

Ziva smiled and uncrossed Abby's arms so that she could lean back against Abby and wrap them around herself. Abby did the last part for her, wrapping her strong arms around Ziva and placing a gentle kiss on that spot behind the Israeli's ear. Ziva never felt so safe as when she was in Abby's arms. It was a strange feeling, especially as she knew Abby didn't have much in the line of combat or defensive training. However, the Israeli was learning to stop questioning things and to just go with what she was feeling. It was hard letting go of something she felt powerless against, but as with everything else Abby was helping her through it. The past four months had been nothing but a whirlwind of change for Ziva David, but she wouldn't have it any other way.

"So does this mean I can tell him?"

Ziva laughed. Abby had a one-track mind when it came to some things. "I suppose that if you could find a safe way to do it I would not object." It would help to have Grandpa Gibbs when they were finally able to go back to America and NCIS. Her child would need a grandfather figure as she would give up her own life before she let her own father anywhere near this baby.

"You will not object?" Abby repeated questionably.

Ziva nodded. "I watched a court show this afternoon when I woke-up for my nap." She shrugged. "I had to do something until you came back." Growing a baby was a lot of work and was draining Ziva's energy faster than she thought it would.

With nothing else to do, Abby went out while Ziva took her afternoon naps. She wasn't out long – two, three hours tops, but it gave her a chance to get some shopping done and have some alone time. She loved Ziva, but everyone needs some time to themselves. With her and Ziva being on the run and in hiding they spent a lot of time in their hotel rooms together and that left very little alone time. It wasn't like she went out all that often either. Maybe two times a week. She loved it when they took naps together and often forfeited her alone time in favor of some naptime.

"Oh I know!" Abby exclaimed practically jumping off of the couch. "I'll call McGee's cell phone. You know, the one you gave him that no one but you, McGee and Gibbs know about."

"I am the only one with the number to that phone Abby. Even McGee does not know the number. How are you going to call him without arising suspicion when the only person who knows the number is me?"

"And you're dead."

Ziva nodded. "Technically."

Abby sat back down. "Good point."

"Do you even think he still has the phone?"

"Another good point." Abby thought for a minute. "Maybe Gibbs took the phone from McGee when he figured out that you were still alive. To make sure no one else found out and tried to contact you from that cell believing that you would think it was McGee and respond."

Ziva looked confused. "I don't know Abby."

Abby smiled and slipped into her own mind. She was Abigail 'I-Never-Give-Up' Sciuto and she would figure it out.

* * *

"Abby! . . . Abby!"

Abby groaned and opened her eyes. Ziva was standing over her, completely dressed with her backpack on and duffel bag in hand. "What's going on?"

"We have to leave." Ziva answered as she dropped her duffel bag next to Abby's near the door. She had already packed all of the Goth's things.

Abby rubbed her eyes and sat up, looking for a clock. "Ziva its two o'clock in the morning. What happened?"

"We need to leave."

Abby detected the urgency in the Israeli's voice immediately and thought it best not to argue. She got out of bed and changed into the clothes Ziva had laid out for her, handing her pajamas to Ziva to put into her duffel bag.

"Are you ready?" Ziva asked.

Abby looked over at Ziva. She was sitting on one of the chairs around the little table by the window with her jacket on, peeking every few seconds through a tiny sliver where the curtain met the wall, sliding the curtain right back once she'd gotten a good enough look. Her other hand never left her belly. Abby gestured toward the bathroom. "Can I have five minutes?"

Ziva nodded and Abby quickly went into the bathroom. By the sink Abby found her toothbrush, toothpaste, face cream, hairbrush and two hair ties. She was about to call out to Ziva asking where her black lipstick was, but then she remembered throwing it into the Seine River while they were still in Paris. Ziva was telling her about life in on the run and blending in, being unnoticeable. At that Abby had promptly dug her lipstick out of her bag and chucked it as far as she could. She couldn't bring herself to do the same with her beloved platform boots, so they just stayed at the bottom of her suitcase. Abby was tall enough as it was. She didn't need to draw any more attention to her height by wearing the boots.

Abby came out of the bathroom a few minutes later. "Ready."

Ziva grabbed her bag and handed Abby's to her. "Let's go."

They didn't speak as they made their way through the little town. There were no lights on in the city. Abby had to stay close to Ziva. The Israeli was somehow able to see despite the pitch-blackness, but Abby was not. Neither woman spoke. They walked for close to an hour, far out of the limits of the tiny city they had been staying in, before they hopped into a cab that would take them the rest of the way. Ziva conversed in the driver in whatever language they spoke in their current city, Abby did not know, and then they were off.

"You should make yourself comfortable." Ziva said. "It is a long ride to the hotel."

They must have changed cabs at least fifteen times in the span of nearly seven hours before they finally reached the hotel. They booked in under different names, different rooms on different floors and opposite ends of the hotel, and with a twenty-minute difference between their book in times. They also wore wigs and colored contacts, which Abby thought was a little extreme, but said nothing. An hour after they checked-in Ziva knocked on Abby's door. Abby went to say something, but Ziva held up her hand and checked the room for bugs before any word was spoken.

"Your room is clean." She walked over to the bag she had dropped on the bed and took out a small, cell phone and handed it over to Abby. "I need your old cell." Ziva got them new, untraceable cells every few weeks, so Abby didn't ask any questions. Despite the fact that they only had their 'old' ones for three days. Abby took the cell out of her pocket and handed it to Ziva who promptly snapped it in half. "I will dispose of it later."

Abby nodded and sat down on the bed, rubbing her temples. "So," She began. "What is this all about?"

"My father is here."

Abby snapped her head up toward Ziva. "Then why are we here?"

"There. He was there. At the other hotel."

Abby sat for a minute. "Did he know you were there?"

"I do not know. I cannot believe that it was simply a coincidence."

Abby nodded. Gibbs spoke against them so often she would be surprised if anyone at NCIS believed in coincidences. "Did he see you?"

Ziva shook her head in the negative and sat down next to Abby on the edge of the bed. "No. The baby was kicking a lot making it hard for me to sleep, so I decided to go for a walk. It always calms me. I thought it may do the same thing for the baby."

"You went for a walk in the middle of the night, by yourself, in a strange city? And without letting me know?" Ziva looked down at her hands, but remained silent. Abby sighed. "Did it help?" She asked, running a hand over Ziva's protruding belly.

"Yes." She nodded. "However when I came back I saw two of my father's body guards getting out of a car across the street from the hotel."

"Did you see your father?"

"No, but he was there. The guards never go anywhere without him the same as he never goes anywhere without them. Their sole purpose in Mossad is to stay with my father at all times."

"How long are we staying here?"

"Not long. Long enough for us to get a couple of hours sleep. Tonight we will head out again and go-" Ziva pulled a little map out of her bag and showed Abby. "Here. I know for a fact that my father is not allowed in that country."

"Why don't we just hop on a plane and get as far away from here as we can?"

"Because if they were there to find me then they are going to be monitoring flights out of surrounding areas for the next few days. We need to lay down."

"Lay low." Abby corrected.

"No, I need to lay down." Ziva stated, collapsing back onto the bed. "I am not in the shape I once was." She chuckled.

"Aw." Abby laughed as she laid down next to Ziva. "I like your new shape."

Ziva smiled. "I never knew that growing a human being was so exhausting."

Abby propped herself up on her elbow facing Ziva. "I'll never know."

"Why not?" Ziva questioned. "You don't want to experience all of this?" She asked with a laugh, then turned serious. "It is the most challenging thing I have ever done. It is exhausting and my skin is so stretched out that I have serious doubts that it will ever go back to what it was. Most of the other things I would have liked to go without, but . . . when I feel this little person inside of me kicking I know it's all worth it." She mimicked Abby's posture and propped herself up on her elbow, reaching out to twirl a stray tendril of hair that had fallen in front of Abby's face. "Do you not want to experience this?"

"What I want and what is possible are two different things."

"Being in Mossad I never thought it would be possible for me to have a child. But I quit Mossad and for all intents and purposes Ziva David is dead. I never thought I wanted it, but-"

"Zi," Abby began with a deep breath. "I was nine when my grandmother died from uterine cancer, twelve when my one of my father's sister's died from it and twenty-nine when my mother's sister was diagnosed. Your chances to develop uterine cancer increase when you have a family history. Also, is having endometrial hyperplasia which I had when I was fourteen. I was supposed to get checked every six months because of the hyperplasia and my family history, but I was young, naïve. I thought I was indestructible. I last saw my female doctor when I was sixteen and then when I went on my twenty-first birthday . . . it was too late."

Ziva reached up and wiped a tear from Abby's cheek.

"Stage three uterine cancer spread to the uterus, the cervix and both ovaries. I was lucky to get out with my life. . ." She looked down at her hands. "But they had to take everything out, so any hope of ever having a biological child or carrying a child were gone. I should be grateful I'm still alive."

"It is hard to be grateful when something like that happens. I had to give up all hope of getting married or having a child when I joined Mossad. It is not an easy thing to accept."

Abby smiled sadly. "No."

Ziva leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss upon Abby's lips. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be." Abby shook her head. "I accepted the facts a long time ago."

"Just because you can't have a child of your own doesn't mean that you cannot have a family." The Israeli said as she reached out and took Abby's hand, lacing their fingers together until she could no longer tell whose fingers belonged to who.

"I know." Abby nodded, playing with their entwined fingers. "I was looking into adoption. Russia, maybe."

"That's nice Abby, but I was talking about this." She moved their entwined hands down to her belly. "We have not really talked about the baby and how we are going to handle . . . things. I presumed that we would raise the baby together, but I never did ask what you want."

Abby moved her hand over Ziva's belly. "What do you want?"

Ziva ran her thumb across the back of Abby's hand a few times before finally looking up at the woman before her. It was getting easier to express her feelings, but it was still hard. "What do I want? Or what is actually possible?" Abby just looked back at her. "What I want is to not have to run anymore. I thought I would be able to do it, but I did not count on doing it while pregnant." She attempted to joke, but she found that she didn't find it quite so funny. "What I want is to settle down some place warm." She smiled at seeing a smile come over Abby's face. "Maybe on the beach. Or in the woods. Less chance of nosey neighbors if you're surrounded by trees." She reached over and wiped the tear from Abby's pale cheek. "What I want is to have this baby, with you. To take it home, to our home and our life that we build together."

"I think" Abby began, swallowing the emotion that was so close to spilling over. It had taken her so long to get Ziva to open up and every day the Israeli surprised her even more. She sat up and pulled Ziva up so that she was sitting too and took Ziva's face in her hands. "That I fall more in love with you every day." She turned her head slightly so that she could capture Ziva's lips as her hand moved up to caress the side of the other woman's tanned face. "And I would love nothing more than to raise this baby with you, Ziva David, or whatever name you're using now." They both laughed. "I would love to be a family and make a life with you." They kissed again.

"I don't know Abby." Ziva admitted once they'd pulled away. "I was trained in Mossad ever since I can remember. They teach us to disregard our emotions, to trust only ourselves. I do not know what has come over me. Never before have I felt such a need to . . ." The Israeli fumbled around finding her words. "share my feelings so openly and to be so . . . affectionate. It was never who I was. I do not think I ever knew how important it was to me to have someone." She reached up and tucked a few fallen hairs behind Abby's ear. "I am glad that I found you."

"You know what?" Abby began, wiping the tears from her eyes. This was a big step and for that Ziva deserved to be rewarded. "In the morning we will dig out a map, close our eyes and just pick a place. But as for right now," Abby hopped off the bed and turned toward Ziva, slowly lifting up her shirt. "I have a better idea."

Ziva played dumb and shrugged her shoulders. "And what would that be? Do you have some more photographs you need developed?"

Abby smiled slyly and kept raising her shirt until it was over her head and tossed it at Ziva. She puckered her lips into a pour and she instantly knew that Ziva was done for. She never could resist it when Abby pouted.

* * *

**[10 Days Later]**

"Ziva?" Abby gently shook the Israeli awake. "Ziva?"

"Mmm?"

"We're here."

Ziva opened her eyes and looked out of the window of the tiny little plane.

"Where is here exactly?" Abby asked.

Ziva pushed herself up in the chair she had been sleeping in. "Um . . . one of the Seychelles Islands. I am not sure which."

"Great. And where are these islands?"

"East of Africa, northeast of Madagascar. Indian Ocean."

Abby nodded and sat back in her chair next to Ziva. "They have to have lost us by now. Ten days, fourteen countries…"

Ziva looked over at Abby and smiled. "Let us hope."

Abby smiled weakly and nodded. Ziva was the ex-Mossad officer, trained in both offensive and defensive fighting styles. However, now Ziva was seven months pregnant. Abby felt an innate need to protect the Israeli. They had been traveling so much the past few days, dodging Ziva's father and anyone else who may be looking for her or even looking for them both. Ziva was trained; she knew what to do and how to do it. But she didn't take into consideration her limitations as a pregnant woman.

The plane came to a stop and Abby stood up and grabbed her bag. "I'm gonna go call Gibbs before we head to the hotel."

Ziva nodded and watched as Abby exited the plane. Once she was sure her father and his goons were back in Israel and no one else was following them, she was going to have to have a serious discussion with Abby about temporarily settling down somewhere until after the baby was born. She would never admit it to anyone, but it was getting harder and harder with each passing day to continue with this life on the run. She wasn't the "crazy ninja chick" she used to be. "Okay." She grabbed onto the chair in front of herself and hoisted herself up. "Now I know why whales do not walk."

"Gibbs!"

Gibbs stood up and walked over to the elevator. Once inside, somewhere the floors of autopsy and Abby's lab, he flipped the emergency stop switch. They were the two most secure floors in the building. _"It's about time Abs."_

"Sorry Gibbs. We've kind of been on the run."

_"Anything I need to know about Abby?"_

"No." Abby looked around while twirling her hair. She desperately wanted to tell Gibbs, but with the appearance of Ziva's father and bodyguard goons their vacation around the world turned into a run for their lives.

Gibbs didn't believe the Goth woman for a second. But he let it go. _"How is Ziva doing?"_

"Oh you know, getting bigger and more stubborn by the day."

Gibbs furrowed his brow. _"Am I missing something?"_

"Ziva's pregnant Gibbs." Abby answered. It was best to be as direct with Gibbs as possible. "Something happened when she was on assignment in Russia." She knew she didn't have to say anymore for Gibbs to know what happened.

_"How far along?"_

"Seven months."

_"I bet she looks beautiful."_

Abby smiled and looked toward the plane as Ziva was just stepping out. Abby chuckled as Ziva struggled to see the steps below her protruding belly. "Yeah."

_"What are you guys doing?"_

"We just landed in-" She caught herself before she gave away their location. "-some country somewhere."

_"And Ziva is…?"_

"Getting off the plane." Abby explained. "You don't want to know what would happen to me if I offered to help her with her bags one more time."

Gibbs chuckled. _"No. I probably don't. . . Put Ziva on."_

"But Gibbs-"

_"Just put her on Abs."_

Abby stomped her feet a few times and spun around. "Gibbs-"

_"Don't make me ask you twice Abby."_

After a few more stomps around, Abby walked over to Ziva and handed the phone out. "For you."

Ziva put her bag down and glared at Abby. "I cannot talk to him Abby. I told you this. As of right now he has no proof that I am alive except for your word."

"Ziva do you really think Gibbs doesn't know?"

"No. But he doesn't have to have proof either. Anyone could be listening into this call." Abby held the phone up higher and pouted. Ziva snatched the phone. "Fine. But I am not talking long."

Abby smiled and quickly grabbed Ziva's bag before the Israeli could say anything and headed toward the door where a car was waiting outside with a smile on her face.

Ziva sighed. Gibbs knew she was alive, did she really think that by not speaking to him and hearing his voice that she could convince herself otherwise? She looked down at her belly and took a deep breath as she brought the cell to her ear. It would be damn near difficult for anyone to trace the call from her end anyway as they were in a specially designed airplane hangar that blocked nearly everything from getting in, including anyone trying to track a phone. She couldn't be sure about Gibbs' end though. But she trusted him. "Gibbs."

_"I hear congratulations are in order."_

Ziva remained silent.

_"Ziva . . . take my advice. Stop running. I know you can't come back here, even though I could protect you." _He attempted to hide his hurt, but he knew Ziva was doing what she felt she had to. _"Settle down somewhere and make a home to welcome this baby into. It goes by so fast Ziva. . . You don't want to waste a minute."_

Ziva nodded and swallowed the lump in her throat. "I know." She hated this over-emotional side effect of growing a human being. She reached a hand up and wiped away a tear that had escaped. "Gibbs? . . We'll be back. I promise. When it is safe I promise you that I will bring Abby home."

_"You and the baby too Ziva."_

Ziva smiled through the fresh wave of tears. "Us too Gibbs."

_"Take care of yourself."_

"Gibbs." Ziva said quickly. She had to ask him one thing before he hung up. "I was hoping…that, when we do finally come home, Abby, the baby and I, that you wouldn't mind being a sort of … grandfather figure for the child-For my child-My and Abby's child." Ziva heard a short laugh before the dial tone. She smiled. "I will take that as a 'yes.'"

Gibbs stepped off the elevator with a big grin plastered on his face. "Grandpa it is."


	16. Kate & Anna

A/N: I don't know all that much about New Zealand, so I apologise for any mistakes I have made in this chapter. Also, I own the island and I completely made-up Tony's middle name purely for my own amusement. Don't forget to check-out the album for this story on my profile under _Four Days_. I added pictures of the house.

Reviews would be nice!  
VillageVoice

* * *

After another three days and two countries later, Ziva and Abby were finally being taken around by a real estate agent touring properties on the north island of New Zealand. There had been a long and tedious discussion on whether they would be looking for a home in the south island or the north island. The majority of the New Zealand population lived on the north island, with only about a quarter living on the south. However, the south island brought in a lot more tourists than the north. Ziva much preferred having a few nosey neighbors to thousands of potential threats.

Before they had decided which country they wanted to settle down in, New Zealand was in the running with a small handful of other countries. Abby was adamant about wanting to go to New Zealand because that was where Xena was filmed and of course Xena was one of Abby's all time favorite ancient heroes. She claimed they had some of the most beautiful beaches and forests in the world. It was far from Israel, the United States, and Paris where Abigail Sciuto had last used her real name Ziva rationalized. And, Ziva also remembered that her father had been banned from the country many years before she joined Mossad because of an international incident he started while on New Zealand soil.

Currently they were in a boat headed to a small island off the coast of the Bay of Plenty. Both Abby and Ziva had told the real estate agent they wanted some place either on the coast or in the woods. However, with most of the coastal population on the Bay of Plenty concentrated on the western and central parts of the coast, if it was going to be on the coast it has to be the eastern part. The real estate asked them how they would feel about having to use a boat to get to their home.

_"A boat?" Ziva asked._

_"Yes." The older woman began. "We have one island off the east coast of the Bay of Plenty with two properties currently for sale. The island is set-up with houses on the beach along the coast in a sort of oval shape, with one of each of the properties for sale on each end, one on the east and one on the west. Both properties are further from the rest of the properties as they are on either tip of the island. There is plenty of privacy and both properties are just a short walk to the center of town, a little further than the other properties, but these houses make up for it. The only question would be whether you enjoy sunrises or sunsets more. The downside is that it is a sixty-minute boat ride from the mainland. Would you be interested in checking out these properties?"_

_Abby and Ziva looked at each other. "Yes!"_

"Now I will admit the actual houses are not that big. The top floor is strictly for the bedrooms with three separate bedrooms and a master suite that included a bedroom, a sitting room and master bath. There are two other full bathrooms on the top floor and one half-bath on the main floor…"

Abby's mind trailed off as she looked out across the vast water. Ziva was pushing for a home birth, but what was she supposed to do if something went wrong? She had no problem with delivering the baby herself, she and Ziva had a long talk about that and Ziva told Abby many, _many_ times that while she would prefer not to have to go into a hospital where she would be in a very vulnerable position during the birth and where she couldn't watch the baby 24/7, she would if Abby didn't feel comfortable delivering the baby. She was honored that Ziva had asked her and when she sat down and really thought about it, it was the safer option. But she couldn't put from her mind the possibility of all the things that could go wrong. In the event that something did go wrong during the birth, there was no way they would be able to make it to a hospital with a sixty-minute boat ride and at least a twenty minute drive to the nearest hospital and have Ziva and the baby both make it out okay. It was a lot of pressure to put on the forensic scientist.

"Dolphins!"

The excitement in the Israeli's voice brought a smile to Abby's face.

"Oh yes, they hang around in the waters in front of the property on the eastern side of the island. They come up when the boats get close. Would you like to go to the east property first?"

Abby looked across the boat at Ziva wondering why the Israeli wasn't answering the realtor's question. Ziva was looking out over the water, totally entranced by the dolphins. Abby smiled at the realtor. "That would be great, thanks."

* * *

**[The Night Before Their Flight to New Zealand]**

"Ow Zi. Easy there."

Ziva untangled the brush from Abby's hair. "Sorry."

"Never let Gibbs hear you say that."

Ziva chuckled. "I do not think we have to worry about that."

Abby shut her eyes tight and gripped the edges of the chair. "Just do it and get it over with." When Abby opened her eyes Ziva was holding what used to be Abby's ponytail in front of her face. "You're good."

"I am aware." Ziva smirked. She dropped the former ponytail into Abby's lap and grabbed a different pair of scissors from the counter. "Now just sit still and I will even this out and add some ah . . . layers, yes?" She continued on without waiting for Abby to answer. "Your bangs have grown-out long enough to be used for your first layer, so your bangs are no longer going to exist. Are you ready?"

Abby nodded and fifteen minutes later Ziva put the blow dryer down and handed Abby the mirror. "Take a look."

"Wow." Abby was still heartbroken at having to lose her pigtails, her bangs and signature midnight black hair. It was now dyed a color closer to Ziva's. Still dark, but not the same. Her now brown hair came just a tiny bit past her chin at the longest layer and a couple of inches above her shoulder at the shortest. She had to admit though - she loved the dark auburn highlights. Abby had always wondered what it would be like to be a redhead and this was probably as close as she was ever going to get. In addition to the haircut her new look also included wearing brown colored contacts. She was no longer the black-haired, blue-eyed Goth she once was. She did what she had to do for them to stay safe. "It looks great Zi. In addition to being a European cab driver in a previous life you must've been a hairdresser too." She stood up and hugged Ziva. "I love it."

"I am sorry you had to lose your pigtails."

Abby pulled back and placed a gentle kiss on Ziva's lips. "Don't be. I volunteered."

Ziva ran a hand through her own self done haircut that included taking several inches off to end her hair at her shoulders and new side-swept bangs. "I would dye my hair as well, but…" She trained off, placing her hands over her ever-expanding belly.

"Not a chance." Abby said, squatting down to place a kiss on Ziva's belly. "We've got to protect the little womb-dwelling creature. Don't we?"

"Abby I was thinking-"

"Don't we? Yes we do . . . Yes we do, because we love you. Oh yes we do."

Ziva looked down at her belly. "Abby? . . . Abby? . . . Abigail?!"

Abby looked up from Ziva's belly. "Yes?"

"Can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure." Abby stood up and ran a hand through her new haircut. "What's up?"

"I was thinking about what we're going to use for names in New Zealand. We have to assume that we are going to be there for at least the next six months, so the names we chose have to be names that we are comfortable with and names that we, meaning you, will not have to send too much time getting used to before you answer to it without a second thought."

"What do you mean me?"

"Abby, I am highly trained in undercover operations. It does not take me long to get used to a new identity."

Abby nodded. "Good point."

"I like your hair." Ziva smiled and ran her hand through Abby's hair. "It suits you."

"You think so?" Abby turned around and looked in the mirror.

Ziva smirked. "Yes. It is very . . . how do you say it? . . . Soccer mom-ish."

Abby turned back to Ziva with her mouth wide open. "Ziva David, you did not just say what I think you said."

"What do you think I said?"

"You did not just call me a soccer mom?"

"No." Ziva shook her head. "I called your hair that of a soccer mom."

Abby stomped her foot and Ziva took off running across the room, turning around briefly to see Abby right on her heels. She couldn't run as fast as she used to now that she was carrying around another fifteen pounds, give or take . . . another fifteen pounds. From the bathroom through the sitting room and into the bedroom Ziva had run out of places to run. Apparently Abby didn't like soccer moms. "We need to discuss names, Abigail."

"Oh don't worry Zee-va, we will. But as for right now,"

Ziva took a step to the right and doubled over. "OW!"

"Ziva!" Abby immediately forgot about their chase and ran over to Ziva, already mentally chastising herself for chasing a pregnant woman. She should have known better. "Ziva talk to me – what's wrong."

Ziva snapped up with a big smile plastered on her face. "Nothing. But now the chase is over."

Abby couldn't believe Ziva had done that. She turned and walked away. "That's not funny."

Ziva walked around the upset woman and stopped in front of her, gently placing her hands on Abby's crossed arms. "I'm sorry."

"Really not funny." Abby gently slapped Ziva's arm and turned away from her again. "It's not nice to do stuff like that to me."

"I know. You are sensitive."

Abby looked over her shoulder. If looks could kill…

Ziva once again walked around Abby and stopped in front of her. She reached out and gently guided the Goth's chin up so that their eyes met. "I am sorry."

Abby re-folded her arms across her chest. "I really thought something was wrong."

Ziva uncrossed Abby's arms and guided her hands down to her belly. "Still kicking."

"She's okay?"

"The baby is fine. I wish you would stop calling it a 'she.' It is a boy."

Abby ignored the comment and withdrew her hands from Ziva's belly, now assured that there was nothing wrong. She sniffled in an attempt to stop the tears from coming. "I really thought something was wrong."

"I know." Ziva reached up to wipe the tear that had fallen from Abby's cheek, letting her hand linger.

"What am I supposed to do without you Ziva?"

"You will never have to know."

"No, no I did know. I knew for eighteen months when you were off doing God only knew what, God only knew where and with God only knew who. I spent eighteen months waiting for the phone to ring or a knock to come to my door or an e-mail . . . anything. I…" She trailed off. "I can't go through that again."

Ziva enveloped Abby within her arms and held her as tightly as she could; doing exactly what Abby would do if the roles were reversed. "You will never have to. I promise you Abby."

"You don't make promises you can't keep." Abby said as she pulled back to search Ziva's eyes for any hint of anything other than absolute sincerity.

Ziva shook her head. "I don't."

Abby looked deep into Ziva's eyes for a few seconds longer before slowly nodding her head. Without looking away she slowly leaned in and kissed Ziva. A kiss that told of everything she had just spoken of; how Ziva was her whole world and nothing else but the two of them mattered. It wasn't long until their clothes laid forgotten on the floor . . .

**[A Few Hours Later]**

Ziva lay on her side, running her hand through Abby's new shorter, lighter, silkier haircut. It was amazing how a box of hair color and a few snips with a pair of scissors could completely change a person's look. "Our flight is in a couple of hours."

Abby opened her eyes and looked at Ziva. "Did you really have to wake me up to tell me that?"

Ziva smiled and leaned down to place a gentle kiss on Abby's lips. Their activities the past few hours pretty much completely draining them both. "No."

"But you did anyway." Abby chuckled.

Ziva let her hand linger on Abby's cheek for a minute before bringing it back to tuck a stray hair behind her own ear. "We need to think about what names we are going to use. I used cash to buy the plane tickets and booked them under a number, however we are going to need names once we get to the airport. I need to call a real estate agent and book our hotel."

"Can't we just use our real names? Different spellings and last names or . . . whatever."

"Your first name is common enough that you could continue to use it without arousing any suspicious. Mine is not. I need a new name."

"Use your middle name."

"Aniah? It is not common enough either."

"Change it to Anna." Abby said with a yawn, not even trying to keep her eyes open anymore.

"That could work." Ziva thought for a moment. "I have a Chilean passport I need a Chilean surname…" She trailed off, not speaking to Abby but rather herself out loud. She wasn't as sentimental with names as Abby was, but she had a good friend growing up who was from Chile. Her father and Ziva's father did business together and he often brought Daniela with him as he knew Ziva was only a couple of months older. They had a lot of fun together. Aside from Tali, Daniela was Ziva's first best friend. "Reyes." She finally said. "I will use Reyes."

Abby nodded. "Glad you finally chose." She joked.

Ziva ignored the comment. "You should use Kate as your first name."

Abby opened her eyes and propped herself up on her elbow. "Why?"

"She was your best friend."

"I still miss her."

"I know." Ziva reached out and tucked a stray hair back behind Abby's ear, but it kept falling back out. Her first layer was too short to tuck behind her ear. "You always will." Ziva had lost enough people in her life to know how true that statement was.

"It sucks."

Ziva nodded. "What about your surname? Kate…" Ziva trained off. Kate needed a last name, however they had already used so many. It was hard to think of one that that they had neither used nor used any combination of nor knew anyone with…there were a lot of factors considered. Especially because they were about to make a semi-permanent move and the names would stay with them for a while.

"Diggs." Abby stated.

"Can't you just choose Smith or something?"

"No. It's a combination of Gibbs, DiNozzo and McGee. You got the 'D' from DiNozzo, the 'g' from Timmy, and the "i" and "s" from Gibbs. And, it kind of sounds like Gibbs. Diggs…Gibbs."

Ziva threw her head back and laughed. She fell more in love with Abby every time the woman opened her mouth – most of the time. "I was thinking something a little more normal."

"What's wrong with Diggs?"

"Isn't the name of the Broadway actor? On that show now . . . what is the name of that show? With the doctors in LA?"

"Private Practice."

"Yes, Private Practice."

"Hmm . . . good point."

Ziva took a deep breath and looked deeply at Abby. Abby was a person who drew her strength from the people around her; her family, friends. "How about Biggs? It doesn't sounds as unique, yes?"

Abby nodded. "But it doesn't have anything from Tony."

Ziva broke the name down. "You have the 'B' and 's' from Gibbs, the 'g' from McGee, and the 'i' from DiNozzo. Also, Tony's middle name is Benedict. But if he ever finds out I did not tell you." She waited a minute for Abby to stop laughing. "That could also account for the 'B.'"

Abby took a break from her laughing fit to take a breath. "Perfect."

Ziva chuckled. "I should not have told you that."

"Oh no, you definitely should."

"When we see him again, do not make fun of him. He told me in the strictest of confidence. It is a family name, passed down to all first-born DiNozzo males."

"Poor Tony." Abby continued laughing. "Poor DiNozzo's first born little DiNozzo. Forget Biggs, I want my last name to be Benedict."

"You are not using Benedict."

"We should name the baby Benedict."

Ziva shook her head as Abby was literally rolling with laughter. No Caf-Pow and little sleep put Abby miles past exhausted at this point. "Abby. . . Abby if you could stop laughing for a minute we need to get hacking."

Abby stopped mid-laugh and sat-up. "We need to what now?"

"We need to hack into the immigration databases."

"Why?"

"Because I do not have the means to get us new passports so we need to use the ones we have, just changing everything in them."

Abby smiled and threw her arms around Ziva, crashing her lips down atop Ziva's own. "I love it when you talk dirty."

Ziva smacked Abby's behind and pointed to the laptop sitting on the desk beside the bed. Abby jumped off the bed and ran to the laptop. "I need you to hack into the Chilean and the American immigration databases. Can you do it?"

Abby scoffed. "Can I do it? Puh-lease."

"After that I'll have to take new pictures and print everything out to put into these blank passports." Ziva explained as she pulled out two brand new passports. "I thought something like this might happen where I wouldn't have the means to get official passports made from other countries, so I may or may not have had a secret box in that space behind one of the cabinets above the fridge full of blank passports. But the question is, how are we going to get the information printed on the pages?"

Abby smiled and turned back to the laptop. "Leave that all to me."

Ziva leaned over and placed a kiss on Abby's forehead and left the passports beside her before heading into the bathroom. She had to put in her contacts to change her eyes to blue and find her glasses - another cleverly placed costume piece to further hide her true identity, before they took the pictures. She popped out for a quick second. "And make sure to take my necklace off before we take the pictures. I'll help you cover up the tattoos once I have straightened my hair."

Abby's hand flew to the Star of David pendant around her neck. She hadn't taken it off in almost two years. She would have to find a safe place for it to reside for the next few months.

**[Two More Hours Later]**

"Abby, you are amazing."

Abby smiled at her handiwork. "Most convincing if I do say so myself."

Ziva grabbed one of the passports and looked at it every which way she could and had to agree. "You would never know that we took these pages out and ran them through the printer."

"Nope." Abby shook her head. "I have to say though, I am rocking this haircut." She grabbed Ziva's passport from her hands to check her picture. "You look hot in glasses."

Ziva smiled. "I try."

Abby hit Ziva with the passport. "Don't get cocky."

Ziva stuck her tongue out and grabbed her passport back from Abby. "Are you ready?"

Abby picked up her bag and shoved her own passport into the picket. "Ready." She held out her hand. "Let's go get us a home."

* * *

**[Back in New Zealand]**

The real estate agent tied the boat up as Abby and Ziva stood on the dock looking up at the house they both knew would be theirs. It was love at first sight. "Wow."

"That is usually the general consensus." She explained as she joined the two women on the dock and gently pushed them up the stone pathway to the house.

"It's neo-classical in its design with its arches over the front doorway and the windows, the columns on either side of the doorway and the mini columns on the railing of the large balcony and in front of the outside doorways in each of the bedrooms, the large balcony itself, all of the doorways and windows and even its apricot color, white accents and burnt orange roof."

Abby nudged Ziva. "Didn't she say this place was small?"

Ziva chuckled and brought her finger to her lips. "Shh . . . maybe this is small here."

Abby laughed and walked through the door the realtor held open. "Oh . . . my . . . God."

"Wow." Ziva added.

"Maybe 'small' is an understatement." The realtor confessed.

Abby and Ziva nodded with mouths still agape. Inside the front door was a beautiful entryway that lead in three different directions. To the right went into the formal entertaining room followed by the dining room and behind it was the kitchen with room and equipment that would far exceed the needs or dreams of even the best five-star chef. To the left was the living room/office that spanned from the front of the house all the way to the back with a smaller room next to the kitchen that could be used for a playroom. Behind the staircase in front of the kitchen and playroom was a beautiful library that nearly had Ziva in tears.

Straight ahead was a white marble staircase that cut-off in the middle and one side continued up to the left side of the top floor, and the other to the right side. To the left were two bedrooms with one bathroom at the back end of the hall and to the right, the master bedroom and smallest bedroom with an identical bathroom at the end of that hall. In front of the staircase was the double doorway that led out to the balcony that overlooked the front of the property and could see straight to the ocean.

"Wow." Was all that Abby could say.

"You have been saying that a lot recently." Ziva joked as she pulled Abby into the master bedroom. "Now this, I would have to say 'wow' to."

Abby nodded. "A-huh. I could fit my entire apartment into this room."

"Unfortunately the family had to move back to Europe or something before they could furnish the house so you will have to do all of that yourself, but it is a great opportunity for you as no one has lived in this house yet and you will be able to furnish the home to your specific tastes. There is a fireplace over here." The realtor explained, pointing to the corner of the room.

"A corner fireplace?" Abby questioned. "That is so cool." Abby ran over to the fireplace, made out of the same marble as the staircase, but in brick form. "So cool."

"There is one in the living room, identical to this one, and one in the formal entertaining room as well that is black. This one and the one below in the formal room are connected. It doesn't so much go with the neo-classical design of the house, but the people who built it liked to listen to the ocean at night while sitting in front of the fire. Too bad they never got to do that before they had to leave."

"Sounds good to me." Abby agreed.

"The two bedrooms on the other side of the hall are both equal sized – smaller than the master bedroom of course, but the other bedroom on this side of the hall would be perfect for the baby."

Abby and Ziva nodded and followed the realtor out of the room and down the hall into the smallest room. Abby was amazed. "It may be the smallest bedroom, but it is still bigger than any room I've ever had."

Ziva nodded. "I agree. There is plenty of room in here for several infants."

"I see a large wrought iron crib over there." Abby began, walking over next to Ziva. "A changing table over there, a big, padded rocking chair in the corner." She laced her fingers with Ziva's and laid her head on the Israeli's shoulder. "A dollhouse over there."

Ziva rolled her eyes. "Or a train set."

Abby smiled up at Ziva. "Or a train set."

Ziva turned around and looked at the real estate agent. "We would like to make an offer."


	17. Family

A/N: So my Muse came back recently. I am not really sure what will keep her around, but reviews certainly couldn't hurt ;P ALso be sure to check the album for this story on my profile page. There are a lot of new additions with this new chapter. I would also like to thank those of you who read and review every chapter. Thanks so much! I am glad you like the story.  
And I completely made up this little island and take full credit for it.

VillageVoice

* * *

"You can't be serious?" Abby asked.

Ziva dropped her cell phone down onto the bed. "Alyse said that the offer was temporarily accepted pending acceptance by the community board."

"So we have to impress these people now?"

Ziva nodded. "They are also conducting thorough background checks. Are you sure that you put all of the information online?"

"Positive."

"Passports, licenses, work and residence histories?"

"Double positive."

"This place is its own community-"

"Its own cult." Abby corrected.

"Regardless," Ziva began as she slowly lowered herself down onto the bed. "If we want the house we have to meet with the board 15:00 hours tomorrow."

"Oh no. We are getting that house so at three o'clock tomorrow we will be putting on the best performance of our entire adult lives."

* * *

"So Kate, what did you do back home?" Abby smiled as a woman named Gwen, who Abby believed was one of the two nurses working at the little clinic on the island. With so many new people introducing themselves it was hard to keep them all straight. "Where is home again?"

"The U.S." Abby answered. "Texas."

"Right, right. So what did you do?"

"Oh, you know . . ." Abby looked around for Ziva, but found the other woman thoroughly engrossed in a conversation with the resident doctor on the island, Lawrence Jacobs and thus unable to help her as they hadn't yet discussed this. "I've done everything. I worked as a party planner, a translator for the deaf, a photographer, ran a lab on occasion-"

"You're kidding?! Our lab tech just moved back to the mainland. We've been needing one for a while, but no one here knows the first thing about running a lab nor has any interest in learning how."

Abby smiled. "Really?"

"Do you have any experience with computers as well?"

"Do I?"

xxxxxxxxxx

"How far along are you?" The doctor asked Ziva.

"Thirty weeks." Ziva answered.

"Do you have an obstetrician yet? I'm just asking because I'm the only doctor on the island. I work here Tuesdays, Thursdays and am on-call on the weekends, and I work at the hospital on the mainland Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. I work in the emergency room at the hospital and also spend a couple of hours in the ICU per month, but here I do pretty much everything."

Ziva resisted the urge to tell the man she hadn't asked for his resume. "We are planning a homebirth. Kate is a certified midwife."

"Really?"

Ziva glanced over at Abby to see her deep in conversation with one of the clinic nurses. She would tell her about her certification later. "Yes."

"I heard that you were a dance teacher back home."

"Among other things, yes."

"What other things."

If Ziva didn't want to make such a good impression on these people so that she and Abby could get the house she would have called the good doctor out on hitting on her the minute he looked at her. Hitting on a pregnant woman was one thing. There was a chance she was not with the father of her child or that the father did not want to be involved or that she had used a donor rather than an actual man. It was a whole other ball game to be hitting on a woman in her third trimester who was expecting a child with her female partner. Did he understand he had absolutely no chance? "I have also taught voice, piano and various styles of . . . self defense."

The doctor choked on his wine.

"Are you okay Lawrence?"

"Yeah, fine. I'm just going to go … over there."

Ziva looked around and allowed herself a little laugh when she saw no one was watching – rather she thought no one was laughing.

"Boy am I glad someone finally put that man in his place."

Ziva spun on her heels and turned to find someone she didn't recognize. She made a few quick mental notes out of habit. _'5'8," redhead, maybe 120pounds.' _"I'm sorry?"

"Dr. Jacobs. Excellent doctor, but a complete dog." The woman stepped forward and held her hand out. "Samantha Clarke. I own the dance studio."

"Anna Reyes." Ziva introduced as she shook the woman's hand.

"You two are going to be celebrities around here."

"What do you mean?"

"Lesbians. On a small New Zealand island. Expecting a child together. It's all very U.S. Most people on this island have no contact with the outside world except for their TVs. Only about five percent of the people here go to the mainland on a regular basis other than weekly shopping trips. Most of us live, breathe and sleep here."

Ziva smiled and looked over at Abby on the couch to see her now finished with her conversation. Abby waved and smiled back. "That is if we get in."

"Oh you're in girl. You were in the minute you and Kate walked through the door together. You've been here for a little over an hour now and how many people have you talked to?"

Ziva thought for a minute. For this 'interview' the board had taken over the sole restaurant on the island and set-up a buffet to make the interview seem less formal - and of course no informal interview was complete without an open bar, not that Ziva could take advantage of that, but it was more like a bunch of people just hanging out and chatting rather than an interview. Ziva cast a quick glance around the room. Mossad training 101 – know your enemy. Ziva couldn't be sure that these people weren't her enemy, but until she was she wasn't going to trust any of them. She remembered every single one of their names, the names of their spouses and their children, where they lived and what they did for work. "Everyone." She answered. "Except for you."

"And you're talking to me now." Samantha nodded. "As I said – celebrities."

Abby joined the group just as Samantha was pulled away by a small, curly red haired child she introduced as her four-year-old daughter Shannon. Ziva lowered her voice. "We are celebrities."

"What?"

"If anyone asks you are a midwife."

"What?"

"I will explain later."

"I think I have a job."

"What?" It was Ziva's turn to ask.

Abby spotted their real estate agent walking toward them "I'll explain later."

"Girls."

Abby and Ziva nodded in sync at the rotund woman in front of them. "Alyse."

"Great news." She began. "They loved you! I've never seen anything like it. These people have trouble reaching a consensus about where to have their town meetings. They have never all agreed to allow an outside family to move to the island this fast that I have heard about. They asked me to draw-up the papers straight away and get them immediately to you two to sign. What did you say to them?"

"That we are lesbians." Ziva whispered into Abby's ear.

Abby smirked. "You're the lesbian." She whispered back. "I am strictly bisexual."

"Not anymore you are not." Ziva countered.

"What was that?" Alyse asked.

Abby gently elbowed Ziva. "Nothing. We're just glad that they liked us." She shot Ziva a warning glance and the Israeli had to turn around to hide her laughter. Abby smiled at Alyse. "Pregnancy . . . She cries, she laughs. Keeps me on my toes."

"Right." Alyse nodded skeptically. "Well I have to head back to the mainland to get the papers. I hear that the Rae's have offered to show you around the island. I suggest you take them up on their offer. It will help to know your way around the area since this is going to be your home very shortly." She smiled at Ziva and Abby as she reached down to grab her bag. "I'll be back in a few hours."

* * *

The island was simply beautiful. It was arranged in an oval shape, with the houses all along the beach forming its outer shape. Everything else was located at the Town Center smack dab in the middle of the island. There was a good-sized clinic equipped to take care of everything from skinned knees to broken bones to injections to some minor surgical procedures that included basically anything that did not require the use of anesthesia staffed with one doctor and two full-time nurses and as soon as they got Abby to agree, they would once again have a lab tech to run blood and urine samples and test for all sorts of things.

There was a school that taught grades one through twelve. All children on the island were home schooled by their parents until the time they entered school, but were still provided with plenty of socialization in the forms of the dance studio and little league baseball, basketball and soccer, art classes and numerous play groups that met several times a month at the playground behind the school, at the beach or at someone's house.

There was also a veterinarian who lived on the island, Lucinda Rea. She worked exclusively on the island. Abby and Ziva were told that people on the island valued their pets very highly with each family having at least two pets, not including fish, ranging from dogs and cats to birds and other small animals. They weren't so much fans of reptiles or amphibians though. In fact, Lucinda's veterinary practice was attached to the pet store she owned and she could never remember stocking a single lizard or snake, turtle or frog. Most of the animals stocked at the pet store were the offspring of animals currently owned by people who lived on the island. Lucinda always had a heavy supply of fish she ordered from the mainland, but she also had puppies and kittens once or twice a year, where as she tended to have a constant supply of small birds and hamsters, mice, rabbits and such all supplied by the people who lived on the island.

Any animals that weren't adopted on the island went up for adoption on the shop's website and were taken with Lucinda back to the mainland once or twice a month. However, there were also some that she couldn't find new owners for, but also didn't want to give up and so they lived in the pet store as her pets. She certainly had enough room.

Ziva looked around. There were also six small-ish windmills behind the shops, occupying the grassy area between the back of the shops and the main brick pathway that supplied the power necessary to equip the entire island with all of the energy they needed. Just be safe though, there were also solar panels on the top of each windmill as well as a couple on top of every house and shop as a source of back-up energy.

"And here is the grocery store. There is a ship that comes in twice a week with supplies and Ernie can get you anything you need as long as you tell him on Sunday. That's when he puts the order in."

Abby and Ziva continued along as Lucinda led them around town. Lucinda was married to Andy, a lawyer who worked mostly from home and also acted as the law enforcement on the island.

"You basically have two strip-malls. The one on the north side, which we are on and the one on the south side." Andy explained and pointed across the town center to a similar strip of shops. The shops surrounded the Town Center, which consisted of the 'park' - a large fountain with a small pond surrounded by a generous plot of grass in the same shape as the island with the fountain at the exact center of both the island and the 'park.'

Ziva took a minute to make sure that she could remember where everything was. The school was at the head of the Town Center with the baseball and soccer fields behind. The clinic and Lucinda's pet shop/veterinary practice were at the other end. The shops on the north side included the grocery store, the florist and the restaurant. The south side included the dance studio, the music studio, the salon and an abandoned studio that hadn't had anyone or anything in it in quite a few years.

"Why is everything here identified by either being on the west side or the east, or the north or south?" Ziva questioned.

"Well," Lucinda began. "There are no streets. We have the main brick walkway around the outskirts of the town center, behind the shops and pathways from everyone's houses to that main walkway and then it's paved around the shops and everything. But there are no streets or roads to identify anything."

Ziva nodded. "That makes sense."

"How many people live on the island Luce?" Abby asked.

"There are thirty families. Fifteen houses on the north side, fifteen on the south then yours on the east and the empty house on the west. There have been a few people interested in both of the properties, but it takes a special type of person to live on an island such as this."

"There are not many people who can appreciate a sixty-minute commute via water." Ziva offered.

"That, and it takes a good forty-five minute walk to get from the farthest point on the west side to the farthest on the east and half an hour to get from the farthest point north to the farthest south. But it's more than that . . ." Lucinda guided them to the park and sat down on a bench. "Please, sit. We're a big family here. Everyone knows everything about everyone. We all know that Ashley, one of the history teachers, has had the biggest crush on Sean, the guitar instructor, since they were in little league together. Though she will never, ever tell him about it."

"That's so sad." Abby irrupted.

Luciana chuckled. "It is, but that's the way things go around here. Not with people not telling people how they feel, they usually do, but with us all knowing about it. We're the kind of people who will knock on your door with a batch of cookies just because we baked them. We'll call you up to make sure everything is alright if we haven't seen you all day. We'll know the minute something is wrong without you saying anything. There is no movie theater, no shopping mall, no fancy cars, no bars or clubs. We have weekly activities, we have softball, basketball, soccer and volleyball games and big parties on the holidays, but that's it. We have church in the auditorium in the school. We make potential home buyers go through a ridiculous screening and interview process because we don't like outsiders. We're a family here. Not many people can handle that."

Ziva grabbed Abby's hand, entwining their fingers together with a bright smile on her face. "I think that that sounds nice."

Abby smiled and turned to Luciana. "Do you have room for two more in this family?"

Luciana nodded. "I believe that we have room for three."

Ziva's and Abby's free hands both made their way to Ziva's belly. Abby sighed and leaned back against the bench. "Move-in is going to suck."

* * *

"Ziva, we have a problem."

"Yes." Ziva admitted, rounding the clothing rack with an armful of various clothing pieces. "They have a very limited maternity section basically consisting of a thing called a . . . a mow mow, meow meow . . . moo . . . some ridiculous animal sound."

"No, well yes, but that's not the problem I'm talking about."

"What is the problem Abby?" Ziva looked up at Abby as she dumped all of the clothing she was holding into the shopping cart. She tried really hard not to laugh at the hideously floral dress Abby was wearing.

Abby pursed her lips and sighed. "They have the best pair of platform boots I have ever seen. And they have the most adorable plaid skirts and-"

Ziva put her hands on the outside of Abby's upper arms and forced the woman in front of her to focus on her for a minute. "Abby . . ." Ziva trailed off as she searched for the right thing to say. "I realize that you have made a lot of … sacrifices to be with me-"

"Ziva they're not sacrifices if I'm gladly giving them up. Besides they're just clothes-"

"And you're hair." Ziva reminded, running her hand through Abby's hair.

"I really like this haircut."

"And your eyes."

"I had green eyes my entire life, a little change is good. Listen Ziva, I want to do this – all of it. We're a family now and people in families give up some things for the better of the family. Don't forget that you've given up a lot too. I'm giving up my plaid skirts, but you're giving up your camo pants. They're like . . . your identity. See me, I can wear pants. But you-"

"Yes, but that was my choice."

"It's mine too. Believe me Ziva, if I didn't want to be here with short hair, brown colored contacts, jeans, sneakers and enough cover-up hiding my tattoos to cover an elephant, I wouldn't be."

Ziva shook her head and sat down in one of the chairs by the entrance to the changing room. "I am sorry Abby. I do not mean to keep questioning you."

Abby knelt down in front of Ziva with a hand on Ziva's knees. "I know. It's hard to go from trusting no one but yourself to trusting someone else so completely you don't know what you'd do without them. It's hard to put that much trust in someone. To know that they hold your heart in their hand and they could crush it just as easily as heal it."

Ziva looked down at Abby with tears brimming in her eyes. "You need to stop reading my books."

"I do." Abby chuckled and dragged the other chair over. "But it's true. I love you Ziva. I love you no matter where we are, what names we're using, and what we're wearing."

"I'm sorry. Hormones." She explained. "But really Abby" Ziva eyed Abby up and down. "I would rather you walk around naked than wearing . . . that."

"Really?" Abby stood up. "Because that would be so much more comfortable."

Ziva stopped Abby from stripping right there in the middle of the store and pushed her into the changing room with a nice smack on the backside. "Nice attempt."

"Its 'nice try' Ziva." Abby smirked. "And it was worth a shot." She gave Ziva a quick peck on the lips before closing the door behind herself and changing back into her regular clothes. "I think we should suffer the long drive and go to the mall."

Ziva took all of the clothing out of the shopping cart and dropped the pile in the bin for clothes to be put back out on the floor. "You read my mind."

* * *

"Ziva, what color do you want to do the baby's room?" Having successfully found plenty of clothing that they both liked, the pair was now wondering around the mall looking for things for their new house. Their first stop was to a children's store.

Ziva turned away from the tiny little newborn sweater she was looking at. "I haven't thought about it."

"Are you still sure you don't want to know the sex?"

"Yes."

"Then we go with gender neutrals like yellow, green, blue and white, although white's not very practical for a baby."

"Green is a neutral?"

"Depends on the theme, but it can be yeah."

Ziva raised an eyebrow. "I would prefer not to use green."

"Okay, no green. We could do a sea theme with blue. Or teddy bears. They tend to come in pretty much every color." Abby offered.

"We need a theme?" Ziva asked. Abby nodded her head rigorously. The Israeli folded the little sweater and put it back on the shelf. "What themes come in yellow?"

"Come on." Abby grabbed Ziva's hand and dragged her to the back of the store where the nursery displays were. She started at the beginning, bypassing all of the bedding looking to be specifically for boys and specifically for girls. "How about this one?" Abby asked as she showed a night themed bedding set with a moon, clouds and stars in blue, green, yellow and beige.

"It seems too . . . boy-ish, yes?"

"Probably, yeah." Abby led them down some more cribs, stopping at a zoo themes bedding in light reds, oranges and yellows. "This one?"

"Too girl-ish."

"They're baby animals. It's unisex"

Ziva shook her head and continued walking down the rows, looking at each crib set.

"Oh my God Ziva." Ziva turned to see Abby standing in front of three different cribs. "They have camo in three different colors." Ziva shook her head with a chuckle and continued on. "How do you feel about animal print?"

"That would be a definite no."

Abby stopped to think for a minute. "Maybe we should get the furniture first and then match the bedding to that."

"Yes." Ziva agreed. "Furniture second, bedding later. But first I need a ladies room."

Abby walked with Ziva to the bathroom, but when she was supposed to be waiting outside the door Abby dashed back to the store they just left and bought the most adorable little outfit that she knew she had to have the minute she stepped into the store. She was right back outside the bathroom door by the time Ziva was done. "Let's go."

* * *

**[The Furniture Store]**

"And just how are we supposed to get this furniture to the island and then to the house?" Ziva asked as she and Abby were looking at what felt like the thousandth bedroom set.

"The ship that drops off groceries twice a week is a cargo ship that stops by the island on its way down to the southern island of New Zealand. Luce said her brother works on it and we can get him to transport heavy things if we need to."

"And then how are we supposed to get the furniture from the ship to our house?"

"Dollies."

"How is a child's toy supposed to help us move heavy furniture?"

"Not a doll, a dolly. It's this thing you can use to help move heavy stuff, but I doubt that will work either. Maybe someone has a wagon or something. . . Worst case scenario we take all the pieces out of the boxes and bring them in the house one by one and build the furniture that way." Ziva's eyes lit up at the mention of '_we_' but Abby quickly realized her slip. "And by we I mean not you."

For once Ziva did not argue and went back to looking at the different bedroom sets. "I think we should go with this one."

"But it is-" Ziva checked the description of the bed from the book she was holding. "Warm bisque?" She looked from the book to the bedroom set several times trying to figure out how that color was warm bisque. It looked more like the French vanilla coffee Abby had taken to drinking in place of her favorite caffeinated beverage to the Israeli. "It is almost white Abby. The other one is very much black."

Abby looked at the bedroom set next to the one they were standing in front of. They were identical except that one was 'warm bisque' and the other was 'midnight.' She nodded. "I know." She walked onto the platform the set was displayed on and sat on the bed. "Black is Abby. Black is back at NCIS. This'll be good for me. It will remind me who I am and where we are." She looked around at the set. "It'll be good for me."

"Then we shall make a compromise, yes?" Ziva explained as she stepped up onto the platform and sat down next to Abby.

"Depends on what the compromise is."

"I do not want you to give up all of yourself Abby. I fell in love with _you_." Ziva said, taking Abby's hand. "I don't want you to forget who you are. If you forget who you are you are forgetting the woman I fell in love with." She used her free hand to caress the side of Abby's face. "I do not want to lose her."

"I know Zi, I do. I've never been in hiding before. I don't know all the rules."

Ziva chuckled. "The basic rule is to stay alive."

"Thanks. I'll work on that." Abby laughed and leaned against Ziva, nestling her nose into the crook of Ziva's neck. "What am I gonna do Zi?" She asked with a sigh.

Ziva wrapped her arm around Abby. "First you are going to clap out of it."

"Snap out of it." Abby corrected.

"Yes … same thing. You are going to snap out of it and stop trying to create another person. You can only ever be yourself Abby. The way to successfully be someone else is to keep pieces of yourself and modify others. Ziva used to dance, Anna teaches dance. Ziva knows how to speak Spanish, Anna is from a Spanish-speaking country. Do you see where I am going with this?"

"Abby had a stuffed hippo, Kate likes hippos."

Ziva laughed. "Something like that, yes."

"Let me try again. . . Abby worked in a crime lab, Kate works medical lab."

Ziva nodded. "You don't have to completely change everything about yourself. Just, maybe not play your music in the lab."

Abby frowned. "I was thinking of that. Can I play it at home?"

"Of course." Ziva nodded. "When I am not there."

Abby laughed. "I thought so."

"Do they not a play a lot of country in Texas?" Ziva asked, purposefully teasing the other woman as she knew Abby could rarely stand country music.

Abby rolled her eyes. "So not gonna happen." She shook her head for added emphasis. "So whats the compromise?"

"Oh yes. I was thinking for the bedding. I saw your face when you saw the black, red and white bedding. We are getting it."

"Where's the compromise in that?"

"We get the bedroom set you picked, we get the bedding I picked."

"Actually, you're the one who first said you liked the bedroom set and I was the one who liked the bedding."

"Okay, so we get my choice for the bedroom set and your choice for the bedding."

"That is still not a compromise."

Ziva pursed her lips and thought for a minute. "I may have misunderstood the meaning of a 'compromise.' No . . . No. It is still a compromise. I get something and you get something."

"But usually in a compromise both sides give-up something they want. Neither of us gave anything up."

"No." Ziva agreed. "What is it called then when it is not a compromise?"

"Umm…" Abby tried to think. "Getting what we want?"

Ziva nodded and stood, content with the answer. "I like it. Let's go get what we want for the rest of the house."

In the end Abby and Ziva left the store having purchased almost everything they needed to furnish the entire house except for the guestrooms and as they were never expecting any guests to show up they were in no real hurry to get those rooms done. For their bedroom they had gone with the warm bisque bedroom set and the black, red and ivory printed bedding. For the dining room they went with a similarly bisque-colored formal dining room set. The living room was furnished with a large couch that was completely white and two love seats and two recliners with white faux-leather bases (Abby was adamant about having nothing made from animals), and chocolate colored cushions and pillows, a coffee table in the same white faux leather as the bases of the furniture and four solid wood end tables in espresso. It was a lot of furniture, but it was a big space they had to fill. No need for an entertainment center as there was a cut-out in the wall perfect for a flat-screen TV as well as two shelves on either side built into the wall and a couple of cabinets below to hold CDs, DVDs, a DVD player or whatever else they felt like putting on the shelves. Their own in-wall entertainment center. For the office part of the room they picked out a chocolate office desk that had two work stations and two white faux-leather desk chairs.

For the library they bought more formal furniture than they had for the living room. They purchased a sofa, two oversized chairs and four accent chairs in champagne with a dark pecan finish along with a large coffee table and two end tables in the same dark pecan color with glass tops. Again there was no need for bookshelves or any storage as every wall of the library was a bookshelf.

It may have been what they originally went to the store for, but it ended out being the last furniture pieces they bought. For the baby's room they chose a Venetian wrought iron crib with four posters and a canopy. That hadn't needed to get a changing table as there was a spot between the two windows with drawers built into the wall and a sort of desk-like structure built into the middle of the shelves that could be made into a changing table with the addition of a guard rail and changing pad, that the pair also purchased, with a couple of drawers below it. All built into the wall. That was a common theme in the house.

After a bit of searching they were finally able to find the absolute perfect bedding. The moment they saw it they knew it would be perfect. It was pale yellow and white with the most adorable little bumble bees. Of course they also had to have the matching musical mobile, desk lamps, light switch fixtures, window valences and curtains, an adorable bumble-bee rug, two small child sized white bookshelves hand-painted with little bees, a glider and ottoman in butter cream with white edging and two little nightstands to put on either sides of the crib, matching the bookshelves and also hand-painted with little bees.

One last stop next door and they got paint for the baby's room and sheets of sheer yellow and white fabric for the canopy of the crib and were off to the dock to speak with Luciana's brother about transporting the furniture. After a quick conversation and a call to the furniture store about where to ship the furniture they were on their way to their new home to begin their new life together. Starting with painting their future child's first room.


	18. What Did I Do

A/N: Just to clear something up that was presented in a review of the previous chapter. As I said I made the island up entirely myself and take full claim to it. That being said, even though it is party of New Zealand it is its own place. All of the people there moved there from other countries. It is not like New Zealand really at all. It is its own place with the people living there deciding everything such as what sports their children play, what the grades in school are called and what Holidays they celebrate. I mention more about the island and the people there in this chapter and future ones and had them written long before I got that review. I think I wrote this chapter over the summer or the beginning of September. Patience is a virtue.  
Also be sure to check the _Four Days_ album and the new poll on my profile! I would like to know what ya'll think about the gender of the baby. Of course I know, but I would like to see what you guys think.  
-This is a repost of the chapter as I found an error that needed to be corrected-

VillageVoice

* * *

With the help of several men around the island, Ziva and Abby were all moved and settled in in no time. "I really wish you would let me help." Ziva said for what had to be well past the thousandth time that week. "I feel useless."

"You have no reason to feel useless." Abby grunted as she struggled to get the refrigerator into place. It was the last piece that had to be put in and she insisted that she could do it herself. Now, however, she realized that it was a lot bigger than the box made it seem. "You . . . are . . . doing . . ." She pushed as hard as she could to have the refrigerator move only an inch. "The most . . . important . . . job . . . there is." She let out an exasperated breath and took a breath, leaning against the fridge. "Growing a baby is hard work."

Ziva shook her head and brought her attention back to the book she was reading, '_What to Expect When You're Expecting_.' The woman at the bookstore was adamant that no pregnant woman should go her entire pregnancy without reading. _"Better late than never." _She claimed. Well Ziva was reading it now and she really wished she had waited until later.

For the past week all Ziva had been doing was sitting. Sitting and shopping, sitting and shopping, but that shopping came to an abrupt end when she started getting really nauseas on the boat. So now her days consisted of sitting and telling the guys where to put things. Occasionally they let her move a book, but even that was a rare occurrence mostly happening only when they were taking a break and Abby was at the lab. Abby did get her a whole box full of books on her last trip to the mainland, so she had plenty of reading material, but the Israeli wasn't used to simply sitting around. She didn't know how women on bed rest did it. She took her solace in cooking. She cooked breakfast, she cooked dinner, she cooked for Abby, she cooked for the guys. Needless to say they had a lot of leftovers ready to get into the fridge. "When is Jeremy coming to install the satellite and the internet?"

"Sometime today." Abby answered. Because they were on this remote island island their television channels had to come to them via satellite, as did the internet. No big deal really, except for the fact that they had to wait a week for it to be installed. "But you know Zi I was thinking. Maybe we don't need internet."

Ziva put her book down. "You do not want internet access? You Abby?"

"Ziva, if we get hooked up to the internet I am just going to be tempted to e-mail Gibbs or Tim or Tony, Ducky, my brother . . ."

"And e-mails can be traced."

Abby nodded. "Yeah."

"Is there something that can prevent that? I have a hard time believing that anyone could trace an e-mail you sent if you did not want them to."

"Do you need the internet?" Abby asked.

Ziva shook her head. "No."

"Then there is no reason for us to have it. I have access at the lab if I need it for something work related, but other than that I don't think we need it."

Ziva leaned up and kissed Abby. "Then we won't get it."

"Thank-you." Abby kissed Ziva back.

Ziva pulled away and picked up her book. "Now get back to moving that refrigerator because I have things that need to get in there."

Abby brought her hand to the end of her eyebrow in mock salute. "Yes ma'am."

"And Abby?"

"Yes?" Abby pushed the fridge with everything she had. "What are there bodies in here or something?"

Ziva looked up and remained silent until Abby opened one of the doors and found the refrigerator empty. Ziva momentarily wondered what Abby expected to find inside before turning back to her book. "If you call me 'ma'am' again you _will_ be punished."

"Promise?"

"If you ever get that refrigerator in its spot." Ziva winked.

Three seconds later the fridge was in place.

* * *

Ziva was spending the morning sitting outside on the beach when Samantha Clarke, the owner of the dance studio, walked over with her lively Springer Spaniel. "Enjoying the weather?"

Ziva smiled. "Does it ever rain here?"

"Not really, no. Maybe twice a month, but usually at night and it's usually pretty dry by morning. We do get the occasional storm passing by, but nothing that doesn't pass over in a couple of hours." She gestured to the sandy spot next to Ziva. "May I."

Ziva dug a towel out from the pocket behind the chair she was sitting in and handed it to the redheaded woman. "Please."

Samantha spread out the towel next to Ziva and sat down. "And where is Kate this beautiful morning?"

"Working."

"Already?"

Ziva chuckled. "The temptation of an empty lab was almost too much for her. She does not take idleness too well."

"Doesn't look like you do either." She said, gesturing to the various books, magazines and mini-picnic Ziva had scattered around herself.

"I do not. But there is not much that I can do currently." She explained, rubbing her ever-expanding belly.

"He many weeks 'till your due date?"

"Nine." Ziva sighed.

"Feels like you've been pregnant forever doesn't it?"

"Forever is definitely one way of putting it."

"There's a reason I only have one."

Ziva nodded and looked out across the water that seemed to continue on as long as her pregnancy. It had been a week since they'd been living at the new house on the shore and began the move-in process and this was the first time she had been able to get down to the beach even though she could walk there in under a minute. Technically, she could have gone down anytime she wanted to, but she didn't feel comfortable leaving strange men in her house. She didn't know them from a hole in the wall, not that Ziva knew what that expression meant, but she didn't know them. And Ziva never trusted people she did not know.

She loved the smell in the air – the sand, the salt water…it was paradise. Gentle waves breaking on the shore, dolphins jumping in and out of the water, warm rays penetrating her skin, although Abby made sure Ziva was wearing sun block as to not get burnt. Ziva always wished they had a candle that smelled of sun block. It was her absolute favorite scent, reminding her of the summers she spent with her family when she was little. When Tali and her mother were still alive and she was innocent and naïve and believed that the world was this great place because people like her daddy existed. Little did she know the means by which they made it so great.

She looked to her right and saw Samantha looking expectantly at her. "Sorry."

Sam chuckled. "Don't worry about it. I was the same way when Shannon and I first moved here. It takes a while to get used to."

"Where did you move from?" Ziva asked.

"London. Well Seattle originally, but I was living in London for ten years before I moved here. After the divorce I thought it was best for me and Shannon to get away. To make a fresh start somewhere. I got full custody and her father was never around when we were married, so he didn't ask for visitation or anything. It's beautiful and I have my own studio. It was too good of an opportunity for us to pass up."

"It is beautiful. When I can find my camera I will have to take pictures."

"You have plenty of time. It's like this almost every day."

"Too bad." Ziva joked.

"Yeah. It's a real shame." Sam with such a straight face that it took Ziva a minute to realize she was also joking. "Anyway, I came down here for a reason. I have a proposition for you. I know we talked about you teaching at the studio after you have the baby, but I was wondering if you would like to work before that?"

"I appreciate the offer, but I do not think that I am able to dance right now."

Sam shook her head. "No, of course not. Have you ever done yoga?"

"I have participated in yoga classes, but I have never taught yoga myself."

Sam smiled. "Would you like to?"

Ziva raised an eyebrow.

"On a trial basis to start. A couple of classes three days a week, depending on how many you want or are able to teach. There are quite a few mothers who have kids in Shannon's playgroup who have been asking when I'm going to start a yoga class, but I've only been to prenatal yoga when I was pregnant with Shannon so I have absolutely no idea what regular yoga is about or anything. And Shannon's getting older. I need to be there for her more and this way I can keep the studio open and not have to be there. . . Not to mention prenatal yoga has shown to have numerous benefits to both mother and baby."

Ziva turned back to the woman next to her. "Really?"

Samantha nodded. "It increased your overall strength and flexibility, it reduces back pain and swelling, helps improve circulation, it makes you acutely aware of your breathing and how to relax certain muscles that will help more than you can ever imagine during labor. If women could just learn how to relax their births would go so much faster and would hurt a lot less."

"Really?" Ziva asked again.

"Yeah. As I said I took a couple of classes when I was pregnant with Shannon. So what do you say?"

Ziva took a deep breath and looked out across the water. She had been getting some intense back pains the last few days and her ankles were swollen and anything that would help with the labor she was in no way looking forward to was better than gold in her book. She slowly nodded.

"Yes!" Sam exclaimed as she threw a fist into the air. "So it is completely up to you how many classes you want to teach and for how close to the birth you want to continue to do it and everything."

"How many classes do you need?"

"Depends on how many people we put in a class and such, but as of right now I have them divided into . . . I can't even remember. I have the papers at the studio. You and I can get together at some point and solidify things. Yoga is all very US and thus very popular here on the island. Now that we have a yoga instructor I expect more people to sign-up. Is there a good time for you to get together and work things out?"

Ziva looked at all the books strewn about. She had nothing to do that couldn't be pushed back a few years. "I am free now."

"Fabulous. Do you need some time to change?"

Ziva looked down at the bikini halter and short board shorts she was wearing. She wasn't particularly modest, not that she really was, but she thought that with having her own section of beach she could spend some time giving her belly some seldomly seen sun. "Yes. Can I meet you at the dance studio in half an hour?"

Samantha reached down and shook out the towel she had been sitting on and folded it back up before handing it over to Ziva. "I'll be there."

* * *

Abby walked through the front door and deposited her very plain looking black purse on the table below the security system. They knew they probably didn't need it, but better safe than story. After all there wasn't a fifty foot electric barbed wire fence around the island. "Zi, it smells amazing in here." She said as she made her way through the dining room into the kitchen. "What are you making?"

"I am making chicken parmesan with extra thick spaghetti. Just how you like it."

Abby ran around the island in the middle of the kitchen to get to Ziva at the stove and wrapped her arms around Ziva's neck, as her stomach was too large for Abby to get her arms around. She kissed Ziva on the cheek and hugged her tight. "What did I do to deserve you?"

"It is simple. You traveled around the world running from any number of people who would have wanted me dead had they found out that I was … not dead." Even as she said it she knew something wasn't quite right with that. She shook her head. "It is what would have happened. You left your friends and family behind, your job, your dog to run away with me on what very well could have been a suicide mission."

"Never would have happened." Abby said with one last kiss and reached over to grab two plates out of the cabinet. "I knew you'd keep me safe. You never would have let me come with you if you thought there was a significant threat of danger."

Ziva took the chicken out of the oven and set it down on two oven mitts on the island. "You are right."

Abby set the glasses and silverware down beside the plates. They tended to eat at the island. There was plenty of room and stools, and since it was just the two of them they felt no need to use the dining room. It was a long table with eight chairs and looked too empty with just the two of them. They ate in there once. The first day the dining room set was delivered, but that was it. The island worked perfectly fine for them. Abby brought the plates to the stove and waited while Ziva scooped generous portions of spaghetti onto them. Her pregnancy just about tripled her appetite whereas Abby just ate a lot all the time.

Abby placed one plate in front of herself and one in front of the seat to her right, placing a piece of chicken parmesan onto each of the plates as Ziva filled their glasses. In these months together, just the two of them, they had become a well-oiled machine. Too much of something was rarely a good thing. Especially when it meant just the two of them when Abby was such a social person. Ziva had a plan for that.

"I got a job today." Ziva began, sitting down at her seat next to Abby.

"You already have a job."

"Growing a child is not the kind of job that keeps me busy."

"It-"

"You are not the only one who has trouble sitting still Abby." Ziva interrupted. "Yoga, three days a week at the dance studio. Do not worry. I made sure it would not be too much for me or the baby. Sam insisted on a three-day trial period to make sure that I can do it. Yoga is good for pregnant woman. There are many benefits."

Abby mulled it over as she chewed on a breadstick. Yoga was a good form of non-strenuous exercise. It would be good for Ziva's pregnancy and her sanity. "The dance studio is next door to the clinic."

Ziva winked. "Exactly."

"What are your hours?"

Ziva picked up a piece of paper and looked for her classes. "I have Adult Yoga on Mondays and Fridays zero thirteen hundred to fourteen hundred, fourteen hundred to fifteen hundred. Pre-teen/Teen Yoga sixteen hundred to zero seventeen hundred. Then on Wednesdays I have Tiny Tot Yoga ten hundred to eleven thirty and another adult class seventeen hundred to nineteen hundred."

"Isn't that a little late?"

"It is the only time these women can take the class."

"Are you sure you'll be able to do it?"

Ziva nodded. "I should be."

Abby nodded. "If it's what you want then it's what I want."

"It is what I want."

"Then I'm happy for you." She leaned over and gently captured Ziva's lips with her own.

"Sam told me that there has yet to be a baby born here on the island. All of the children came here with their parents when they were younger. No one has had a child here yet."

"Gwen was telling me a bit about the island on our lunch break. It's only recently populated within the past twenty years by a couple from California or maybe Colorado . . ." She took a minute. "Anyway that's why the island seems like more of a part of the US than New Zealand. Then another couple came from the U.S. and then Canada, Europe, South America. Or maybe it was Canada, South America then Europe?"

Ziva thought for a moment and then moved onto a new topic. "How was your first day?"

Ziva instantly saw Abby's eyes light up. She was a lab rat through and through. And for once, Ziva knew what that phrase meant. "It was awesome. Their lab is … amazing. Top of the line everything. For a small-town island they sure know their stuff. If I had even a quarter of this stuff at NCIS I would never have been backlogged even by a day."

"So you enjoyed it?"

"Definitely. I mean, it was a little slow, being a small-town island and all, but I could spend hours looking at that equipment. I have pictures." She hopped off the chair and ran to get her purse. No doubt there would soon be a new scrapbook just for the lab. "When do you start?" Abby yelled through the house.

"Monday." Ziva shouted back.

"So we have the whole weekend free?"

Ziva nodded.

"To do . . . whatever we want."

Ziva smirked and nodded again.

"Which means…?"

Ziva sighed. "More shopping."

"More shopping. And picture-taking. We need some pictures to put up around here." The only picture they currently had displayed was the first ultrasound picture sitting on the fireplace mantle in their bedroom. All of the other photos were in Abby's scrapbooks. They needed some to put around the house – make it look like they hadn't been on the run for the past seven months. They needed to look like a normal couple, a normal family.

When Abby got back to the kitchen it was suspiciously one pregnant Israeli less. "Zi?"

"In the playroom."

Abby walked through the kitchen to the playroom. Currently it was being used as storage as they didn't have a child to play in there yet. Ziva was sitting in the middle of the room searching through the plain brown box in front of her. "Ziva what are you doing?"

"Have you seen a shoe box? About this big-" She gestured the height and length with her hands then went back to pulling everything out of the box.

Abby looked around, but saw nothing. "Can't this wait 'till after dinner."

Ziva spotted the black and white box and pulled it out of its hiding place. "Now it can." With help from Abby Ziva stood up and the pair made their way back to their forgotten dinner.

"Ziva, I know this might be a little late to ask this" Abby began, shoving another large fork-full of spaghetti into her mouth. "But . . . this house is amazing, all this stuff is amazing. . . Where did all the money come from?"

Ziva laid her fork down. Money had always been an uncomfortable topic for her "I have this account nobody knows about, untraceable. I opened it after my Mother died when I was fifteen. I knew there would be a time when I would need to get away, to create a new life for myself. I received an inheritance when my Mother died and when my sister died my Father kept giving me money. I think it helped him to feel less guilty. I opened the account in a different name and have made consistent deposits ever since I opened it. While I was working at NCIS my Father paid for my apartment, my car and…" She shook her head, realizing how juvenile it was going to seem. "A weekly allowance for whatever else I needed. I never spent any of the money I made at NCIS. I deposited all the money my Father sent me into the secret account as well as forty percent of every check I made at NCIS and sixty-percent went into my American bank account so that it wouldn't look suspicious. That and I have many aunts and uncles who send me money for Hanukah and my birthday."

"And that was enough money for all of this?"

Ziva picked her fork back up and nodded. "And a lot more."

"Like how much more?"

"I could own this island if I wanted to." Lemon water came shooting out of Abby's nose. Ziva hopped off the stool and rubbed Abby's back until she got her breathing under control. "Are you alright Abby?"

Abby cleared her throat and took a real slow sip of water. "Yeah." She nodded. "Great. So you're saying you're rich." Ziva ignored the question. "Like really rich."

"My Father and Mother both came from wealthy families. There is a lot more money that went to my Father when I _died_." She cursed in Hebrew. "But we have more than enough."

Abby nodded slowly. "Okay."

The rest of their dinner went by in relative silence with Abby digesting her new found knowledge and Ziva was just really tired. When they were finished Abby insisted on cleaning up and loading the dishwasher and ordered Ziva to the couch with a heating pad for her back. Ziva had given up fighting the other woman a while ago. One, she was too tired to fight and two, what Abby told her to do was for her own good. Abby was looking out for them. "Can you bring some pineapple juice when you are done?"

Abby smiled. "Sure. I'll bring it right out."

Ziva knew that she could do a lot of things for herself, but Abby wanted to be as involved as she could be and if bringing Ziva some pineapple juice helped her feel more involved then who was Ziva to say no? The Israeli chuckled. '_What did I do to deserve her_?' She stopped and turned around. "I have something for you." Abby turned from the sink and Ziva was standing in front of her holding out an envelope. "I hid it in the shoe box."

"What is it?"

"If I wanted you to find out so quickly I would not have put it in the envelope."

Abby rolled her eyes, snatching the envelope from Ziva's hand before the Israeli could make another smartass remark. It was a plane ticket. "Where are we going? Do we have to move again? Ziva we just got here. I love this place."

"Calm down we are not going anywhere. You are."

"Where am I-" Before she finished her question she looked down at the ticket to find the answer. "DC?"

"By way of Auckland and Los Angeles, yes."

"Ziva I can't leave. We just moved in, there's still so much to do." She looked down at the ticket. "I'm confused."

"Your birthday is coming up soon. You and Gibbs have a tradition. You go out to dinner the night before your birthday."

"Yeah, but Ziva-"

"We do not want anything to seem suspicious. And it has been a while since you have been home. Your trip around the world was not supposed to last forever. You can say that you were planning on moving back after you had traveled, but you fell in love with some place and decided to move there. You went back to get some things and to say goodbye to everyone and have your birthday dinner with Gibbs."

A light popped into Abby's eyes. "I can get Harley!"

"Who?"

"Harley. My dog. I got her the day after you left; she and her brothers came with a case. She's been staying with my brother while I've been with you."

"Isn't Harley a motorcycle company?"

Abby nodded.

"Why did you name her Harley?"

Abby blushed and looked down at her feet. "You remember our first date?"

"Yes." Ziva answered with a smile. Such simpler times. "We went for a ride on your . . ." It dawned on her. "We went for a ride on your Harley." She wrapped her arms around Abby, smiling as Abby snuggled into her embrace. "I love you."

"I love you too." Abby said with a kiss. "Thank-you."

* * *

A/N: So Ziva's rich. Yep. Just another piece of the puzzle that is Ziva David. Don't forget to review!


	19. Trust

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews I got for the last chapter. I don't know how I messed up with the military times there. I know what they are, but for some reason it just didn't register. But I fixed it and re-posted the chapter with the corrected times. Maybe I should mess up more often I think that is the most reviews I have gotten for a chapter thus far. But anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Abby's back in DC!

The first set of _italics_ are for the other end of the phone conversation and the second set of _italics_ are a dream. And don't forget to vote in my profile poll.

VillageVoice

**

* * *

**

**[2 Weeks Later]**

"Timmy!" McGee turned around and saw Abby rapidly headed in his direction. He set his coffee down just as Abby launched herself at him. "Timmy I missed you!"

"Abby" McGee began after gently prying Abby's arms from his neck a bit so that he could get air. "What are you doing here?"

With a last squeeze Abby sat down on the bench next to McGee. "My traveling days are done McGee."

"You're back here for good, then?"

Abby frowned. "Well no. I'm just done traveling."

"So you're not here for good?" Abby looked away. "Abby what did you do to your hair?"

"Do you like it?" Abby smiled. "Let's go see everyone else."

The tension was radiating off of Abby in waves. She had to be very careful. Careful not to let anyone know Ziva was alive and that they had settled down on a small island and were expecting a baby in a little less than two months. Nothing about Ziva, nothing about the island and nothing about the baby. There was very little she could tell them and despite the long flight and the previous day spent in LA before heading on to D.C., Abby hadn't thought of a cover story. She had been too busy and excited to think about anything but the people she was headed to see. By the time the elevator dinged at the floor she knew her team, and yes she still considered them her team, was she was actually shaking. She flew out of the doors. Tony was the first one she saw. "Tony!"

"He-hey Abby" Tony spread his feet and braced himself for impact. He suffered the few seconds of oxygen deprivation without complaint. "We've missed you around here. Nice hair."

"Where's Gibbs?" Abby asked once she was sufficiently satisfied with her hugging of her surrogate brothers.

"Director's office." Tony informed.

Abby turned toward the stairs, but quickly turned back. As badly as she wanted to see Gibbs, she wanted to live more.

"What about Ducky?"

"Did I just hear Abigail?"

"Ducky!" Abby turned around and threw her arms around Ducky, careful not to squeeze as hard as she did with McGee and Tony.

They both pulled away with smiled on their faces. "I will admit, no one around here hugs like you do my dear."

Abby hugged the ME again, then Tony and McGee. She took a deep breath and looked around the room. "Nothing has changed."

"Everything has changed." McGee said, looking at Abby.

"Nope." Tony began as he dropped a file into the top drawer of the file cabinet and sat down at his desk, picking up another file. "Same crap, different day."

Abby looked behind herself at Ziva's desk, still empty save for two lone photographs displayed in gold frames – one of Kate and the other of Ziva. "Haven't filled the spot?"

"Don't want to." McGee answered, placing a comforting hand on Abby's arm.

"Gibbs believes that the desk is cursed." Ducky explained. "He refuses to look at potential applicants for the spot."

"He doesn't even let anyone sit in the chair." Tony added.

Abby took a step closer to the desk and looked at both of the photographs. One, her best friend who died in the line of duty. The other, Ziva whom supposedly died in the Mossad line of duty. Both exceptional agents and friends. She looked mischievously around the room and rounded the desk.

"Abby I wouldn't do that." McGee warned.

Abby ignored him and pulled the chair away from the desk and sat down. She hadn't even been sitting for three seconds when Gibbs' voice boomed down from the catwalk.

"Abby get out of that chair!"

Abby jumped up and ran up the stairs. "Gibbs!"

Gibbs carefully navigated his way down the stairs with Abby hanging on with a death grip. "Which one of you let her sit in that chair?" Ducky high-tailed it to the elevator, Tony picked up his desk phone and made himself look busy and McGee had very stealthily put headphones on before Gibbs came onto the floor and pretended to be analyzing some new piece of evidence.

"It's just a chair Gibbs." Abby said, still attached to the man.

"That chair kills people Abs."

Technically a chair was an inanimate object that couldn't kill a fly, much less a person. Unless it was used as a murder weapon, but that would technically be a person killing another person via the chair. And technically only one person who sat in that chair had been killed. Kate. Gibbs knew that Ziva wasn't really dead, so her probably created the mini-shrine and instituted the no-sitting rule before he learned the truth and thus had to keep up the façade so that no one would suspect anything.

Abby hugged Gibbs tighter. "I missed you Gibbs."

Gibbs shot a death glare to his team and pulled Abby over to his desk. "How's everything?" He asked in a low voice.

Abby smiled. "Great. I have pictures."

Gibbs grabbed his jacket off the back of his chair. "Not here."

* * *

**[Gibbs' Basement]**

"And here we are at our new house." Abby explained as she turned the page in her scrapbook. She had made a scrapbook just to show Gibbs. A shortened version of the past months.

"Where is this new house Abs?"

"Gibbs, you know I can't tell you that."

Gibbs nodded. "Don't tell anyone."

"I know." Abby smiled. "Ziva's teaching me a lot about the spy business. Well not so much the spy business, but more the art of hiding and how to live with a new identity."

Gibbs chuckled. That was Ziva. She would never do anything to endanger Abby or anyone else she cared for. "How's she doing?"

Abby turned the page. She had shown Gibbs the traveling pictures and the pictures of them at their new house, outside at their beach, moving things into the house and moving things around once inside of the house. Now they were onto the two ultrasound photos they had, shots showing how big Ziva's belly was each month and pictures of them painting the nursery, setting up the furniture and getting everything the baby would need ready.

"She looks good. So do you Abby."

"Thank Ziva for that. She cooks all the time. I swear I've gained twenty pounds."

"It looks good on you." Abby looked away. "Have you visited your brother yet?"

"Yeah. The boys have gotten so big. They don't even recognize me. I missed so much Gibbs."

"It was your choice Abs."

"I know. I don't regret any of it." She shrugged. "It's just sad. Brian gave me one of their family pictures they had taken at the beach over the summer. He didn't understand why I couldn't tell him where live now."

"I understand." He stood up and walked over to his workbench. He pulled something out of a drawer and handed it to Abby.

Abby took the envelope and opened it. Inside were two photographs - the one that had been taken when Jenny was still alive all those years ago that had been on her computer when Ziva told her Vance was shipping her back to Israel and the second they had taken once every member of the team had come back after Vance's disbandment. Abby and Ziva were sitting on one of the desks in the squadroom with Ducky and Gibbs behind each, respectively, Tony and McGee were standing beside Gibbs with Tony having his arm around McGee hamming it up for the camera like he always did, and even Palmer was there standing beside Ducky. They were all so happy being together again Abby insisted on a picture so she would always have them with her. Even when they went away. Abby smiled. "Thanks Gibbs." She looked over at the clock on the wall. "Almost lunch time, let's go."

* * *

After a quick visit with McGee to her lab to check out how everything was going with her replacement it was out to lunch for the team. It had to be quick, they were working on a big case, but Gibbs let Abby stay in the bullpen once they all got back to chat with everyone. As long as when he looked up everyone was working.

"You're not serious?" Abby whispered to McGee. McGee has just told her of Tony's girlfriend.

McGee nodded. "He's been seeing her for a couple of months. I think it's serious." He whispered. "He hasn't talked about any other women and as far as I know he hasn't been seeing anyone else either."

"Wow. Little Tony's growing up. What about you?"

"Oh you know me." McGee blushed. "Working on a new book and I too have been seeing someone. It's early yet, but I like her"

Abby smiled. "That's great McGee." Gibbs looked up and Abby met his gaze with a huge smile on her face. With everything going on, she hadn't realized how much she had missed him. She looked around the bullpen and caught Tony, McGee and Ducky's eyes – had missed all of them. "I really missed you guys."

"If you have missed us so much my dear, then why are you moving my dear?" Ducky questioned.

"Yeah?" Tony added.

McGee stood up from his desk and joined Ducky by Gibbs' desk, quickly followed by Tony who never wanted to be left out of anything. "Where are you moving Abby?"

Abby looked to Gibbs for help and send a silent thanks to God for making her cell phone ring at that exact moment.

"None of your business McGee. Don't you have work to do?" She heard Gibbs say as she rounded the corner to answer her phone.

"Hello?"

"_Hello Kate_?"

Abby looked around herself to make sure that there was no one within earshot. It would have helped to check the caller ID before she answered. She was so excited to be seeing everyone again that she completely forgot that she still had her New Zealand cell phone with her and not the one she had all those years at NCIS. Without even realizing, Abby had slipped back into her old self. It was as if no time had passed at all.

"_It's Lawrence – Dr. Jacobs_." He corrected. He was calling in an official capacity, not as a friend.

Abby was immediately on alert. She and Ziva had told everyone she was going away back to America to attend a wedding and because of how far along Ziva was in her pregnancy she couldn't risk that long of a flight, but had insisted that Kate go along without her. They all knew she would be unavailable for a few days.

"_There was an accident_."

"Ziva." It came out as barely a whisper. Her mind was filled with the memory of the day Gibbs went to see her in her new house and told Abby of the bombing that was supposed to have killed Ziva.

"_Excuse me_?"

"Anna" Abby corrected. "What happened?"

"_I'm afraid that she fell. There was a pretty heavy rain last night, everything was slippery. She was found on the dock early this morning. She was dry so she wasn't out there all night, but other than that we don't know how long she was out there before she was found_-"

"On the dock? Is she okay?" Abby interrupted. "The baby?"

"_The baby's doing better. We've got Anna hooked up to a monitor. It was touch and go for a while, but the fetal heart rate is steady now_. _When we got her here Anna was having contractions and her blood pressure was extremely high. We don't know whether they're the result of the fall or whether they're the reason she was on the dock."_

'_I wasn't there. She was trying to get to the hospital_.' Abby thought. "She went into labor?"

"_Pre-term labor, yes. At only thirty-three weeks the fetus isn't developed to the point where it could survive outside the womb. We tested the baby's lungs and they're not developed enough yet. We started Anna on a twenty-four hour magnesium sulfate drip. It's too soon to tell if it's working yet, but sometime soon it should start to slow the contractions until it stops them all together."_

Abby ignored the tears as they fell. "What about Anna?" She managed to choke out. She knew that it wasn't physically possible, but Abby felt as though her heart had moved right into her throat. She felt someone put a hand on her shoulder, but in this moment she didn't care who it was or what they heard.

"_Anna's not good. She hit her head and hasn't regained consciousness yet. She lost a lot of blood and is hypothermic, and as I said we don't know how long she was out on the dock before she was found. But we did get her blood pressure back down into normal ranges for the time being. We're at the hospital on the mainland._"

Abby choked down the lump in her throat. Ziva being taken to the hospital was not a good sign. "I'm on my way." She shut the phone and turned into Gibbs' waiting arms. "It's a twenty-four hour flight." She cried. "What if I don't get there in time? She means everything to me Gibbs. I can't lose her again. Not for real."

Gibbs rubbed Abby's back. "I know." After a few minutes he sent Abby down the back stairwell to his car and went back to the bullpen to grab his things. He ignored all the glances and questions as to where Abby went and where he was going. He would think of something to tell them all later.

* * *

Gibbs stood outside the room waiting while Abby had some time alone with Ziva. He noticed the doctor walk-up and stop next to him, but kept his eyes firmly trained on the two figures on the other side of the window.

"How do you know Kate and Anna?"

Gibbs thought for a minute. Abby had to be Kate, making Ziva Anna. "I'm Anna's father." Gibbs knew that the doctor would explain more to him if he pretended to be Ziva's father rather than Abby's.

"Does she know anyone named Abby, Mr. Reyes?"

_'Reyes._' Gibbs took a minute to think of a back story. Reyes was a Spanish last name and he was as far from Spanish looking as it could get. If anyone asked Ziva took after her mother and had her last name. Rule number seven; always be specific when you lie. Gibbs took a deep breath. "Yeah."

"She's not conscious often, a few minutes out of the day at most, but whenever she is conscious she always asks for Abby. We're thinking that if we can get this Abby here it might force Anna to stay awake. We think it could really help."

"Abby was her sister. She died a few months ago."

Dr. Jacobs accepted the answer with a nod and a supportive hand placed on Gibbs' shoulder before walking away leaving Gibbs to his thoughts.

"Come on Ziva. You can fight this." Abby said, stroking the side of the Israeli's face. "You can fight this." Many studies have shown that talking to a loved one in a coma improved their brain functionings, made them heal faster and even helped them to regain consciousness faster. Abby took a deep breath. "I left Harley in DC. When I left Becca was having a hard time adjusting to having two little brothers and Brian said Harley was just what she needed to help her adjust. I got there and Harley came over for like a second and then ran back to Becca. They're inseparable. I couldn't take Becca's best friend away from her. So you need to wake-up because we need to get a dog. We need to talk about what breed, whether we want a boy or a girl, what size…Ziva there are a lot of things to discuss so I need you to wake-up. . . Gibbs is here." Abby looked at the monitors and noted no change at all. "Come on Ziva. Please wake-up. Please."

* * *

_Ziva looked around, blinking as her eyes adjusted to the bright light. Her hand first went to the stabbing pain on the right side of her head then to her flat stomach. She was almost certain she had been pregnant. "Where am I?"_

_"I don't really have an answer to that."_

_Ziva jumped to her feet and was immediately on alert. Until she realized who was standing in front of her. "Agent Todd?"_

_"Call me Kate."_

_"You're dead."_

_Kate nodded._

_"Am I-"_

_"No. You're not dead. Not yet anyway." Ziva followed Kate over to a large oak tree that sprouted up before her very eyes, growing tall and full. "Sit. Swing."_

_"But there is no" Two swings fell down from a thick branch. "swing." She finished._

_"Sit." Kate insisted._

_Ziva slowly lowered herself onto the swing, testing to make sure that it was real before sitting down. "What happened?"_

_"That's where things get a little fuzzy. I was making sure Abby's flight touched down in one piece, but from what I can gather you went into pre-term labor, and were trying to get to the boat so you could get to Dr. Jacobs when you slipped on the dock."_

_Ziva thought for a minute. "The dock was wet." Ziva remembered. "Something was wrong with the baby. I called Dr. Jacobs, but his wife said that he was at the hospital and that I should go see him there. I slipped on the dock." Ziva shook her head. An ex-Mossad officer and NCIS liaison killed by slipping on a wet dock. It was more than pathetic. "I slipped on the dock." She shook her head._

_"Don't be so hard on yourself. You were worried about the baby, you were in pain from the contractions and you'd never been on the dock when it was wet so you didn't know how slippery it could get."_

_"I am a trained Mossad Officer."_

_"Ex-Mossad Officer." Kate corrected._

_"I still have the same training. I should have known better."_

_"Well," Kate began as she hopped off the swing. "That's done and over with. What we have to do now is talk about where you go from here." Ziva walked over to the pond Kate had wondered over to. "You have two options Ziva. One, you can fight this. There is no medical reason why you haven't woken-up yet."_

_"Then why am I not awake?"_

_Kate shrugged. "The simplest explanation is that you don't want to."_

_"What is the complicated explanation?"_

_"There isn't one. You're not awake because you don't want to be. I was just trying to be nice about it." She turned toward Ziva. "Why don't you want to wake up?"_

_"I'm trying." Ziva insisted. "It is painful."_

_"You have a concussion and you're blood pressure was a little high, but I'm pretty sure it's resolved itself. You've experienced much worse."_

_Ziva looked out across the still, still water. "She is better off without me."_

_"I think you should let her decide that for herself, don't you?"_

_"Abby does not know any better. She has no idea what is out there." Ziva shook her head. "The ones who get too close always end-up dead. I have to protect her before I-"_

_"Who will be there to protect her if you give up on her?"_

_"Gibbs."_

_"Abby wants you Ziva. Not Gibbs. She left him and McGee and Tony for you. She chose to go with you all over the world running from who knows who. Because no one is chasing you Ziva. No one is chasing you. What do you think is going to happen to her if she loses you? And the baby?" She paused a second. "What else is bothering you?"_

_Ziva took a deep breath. "I'm scared." It didn't take much for her to tell the truth. She knew Kate was dead. Who could a dead woman tell?_

_Kate's demeanor softened. "Scared of what?"_

_"That I will not be a good mother. I fear that . . ." She took a breath and spoke the truth. "I will turn into my father. I have taken so many lives. What I worry most is that that fact I will get my child hurt or killed. That I won't be able to protect the baby."_

_"Quite the list." Ziva nodded. "Let's start at the beginning." She pulled Ziva over to a bench to their left. "You are not going to be a bad mother. You already love this baby."_

_"Then why am I not pregnant here?"_

_"It is easier to rest and recover if you only have yourself to worry about. You love this baby. You have Abby to help and you know how good she is with kids. Every first time parent worries that they won't be a good parent, that they won't know anything, that they won't love their child enough. You learn as you go along. You won't know how to change a diaper until you change a diaper. You won't know what your baby needs until you learn her cries. It's a learning process that never ends."_

_"Next?" Ziva asked, eyes remaining trained on the pond before them._

_"Your father. He was never there for you or your family. He never shed a tear when your mother died, not even when you or Tali died – his own children. He didn't think anything of what you were feeling after their deaths or Ari's." Kate took a minute. "All he ever cared about was Mossad and he had his eye on the Director's chair long before you were born and nothing was going to get in his way, not even his family. He has ordered you to kill and do things no father – no person should ever ask anyone to do. Does that sound like you? Abby, Gibbs, Tony, McGee, Ducky . . . they mean everything to you and don't try to tell me that they don't because I know the truth. You would never do anything to hurt them or put any one of them in any kind of danger. You are far too compassionate to be anything like your father."_

_Ziva looked at Kate. "I quit Mossad." As Ziva said it she could see how far away from her father that put her. She couldn't live in the world he created any longer. Abby, Tony, McGee, Gibbs and Ducky were her family and she would do anything for them. She couldn't imagine living without them. Even though they were thousands of miles away she knew they were still there. She shook her head. "No. It doesn't."_

_"Do I even need to address the last one?"_

_"No. You have made your point."_

_"There are so many people who want to help you Ziva. I know you're living in hiding and you have to do what you think is safe for a while and that's fine. Trust Abby, trust your new neighbors, trust your own abilities. You're going to be a great Mom."_

_Ziva smiled. "Thank-you Kate."_

_"Just do me one favor."_

_Ziva nodded._

_"Go back."_

_

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_

***Quote** "_The ones who get to close always end-up dead" **from episode 'Good Cop, Bad Cop' 7.04**_


	20. Knowing

A/N: Thanks for the reviews from the last chapter. I appreciate it. And if you haven't yet be sure to vote on the baby's gender on my poll. They talk about the baby's gender in this chapter, so it may give you a little hint as to the gender.

VillageVoice

* * *

"How's our patient doing today?"

Abby looked up as the doctor walked into the room. "Same as usual."

Lawrence checked her vitals and noted everything down on her chart. "She's doing well."

"Yeah." Abby scoffed. "Then why isn't she waking up?"

"It's only been three days; she needs time to heal. She'll wake-up when she's ready. I'll run some more tests, but I doubt we'll find anything different." He hung the chart on the end of the bed. "We're all praying for you."

Abby nodded. "Thanks." She watched Lawrence turn a corner down the hall before turning back to Ziva. She brought her hand to the Israeli's unusually pale face and softly brushed her thumb back and forth across the soft skin. "I told Gibbs I'd meet him for breakfast down in the cafeteria. Can you believe he was still sleeping at the hotel when I left this morning? It's gotta be the time change." She leaned down and Kissed Ziva on the cheek. "I'll be back later."

Abby placed a hand on Ziva's belly to make sure the baby was still moving as he or she should be and turned to leave, but found something holding her back. She looked down and saw Ziva's hand over hers. Her eyes traveled up Ziva's arm, to her shoulder, to her neck and then to her warm chocolate eyes looking right back at her. "Hi."

Ziva struggled to smile back at Abby as she squeaked out a response. "Hi."

"Oh my God Ziva." A few tears slid down the scientist's pale cheek as she sat down on the side of the bed. "How are you feeling?"

"I have had better days. Although this hospital room is nicer than most I have been in."

"I'll go get the doctor."

"No, Abby." She looked up at Abby. "In a minute."

Abby nodded, bringing her hand back to the Israeli's face. "Okay."

Ziva looked out the window. The sun was shining brightly, the birds were flying. It was going to be a good day. She brought her hand to her belly and felt the little kicks of her unborn child against her palm. It was soothing. She turned back to Abby. "Did you say Gibbs is here?"

"We'll talk about that later."

"Is he here?"

Abby smiled. "I'm sorry. He was there when I got the call about you and I couldn't have gotten here by myself. I was so worried . . . I . . . I don't . . . Everything is a blur. I don't even know how I got here."

Ziva put her hand over Abby's. "Then I am glad he was there for you when I could not be."

"I'm just glad you're back now."

Ziva smiled. "Me too."

* * *

"Thank-you for looking out for her Gibbs." Ziva began once she had finally convinced Abby that she would be fine for the few minutes it would take for Abby to run down to the cafeteria to grab something to eat. "And for bringing her here without telling the rest of the team. I appreciate it. You can consider it the favor you owe me."

Gibbs smirked as he shut the door. "Then we're even."

Ziva nodded in agreement.

"Abby showed me the pictures."

"Of?" Ziva asked.

"Everything. She had a scrapbook."

Ziva chuckled. "She has many. There is an entire bookshelf in our bedroom filled with them."

"You know Ziva" Gibbs began, pulling a chair over to the bed. "Abby's been through a lot."

"I know" Ziva interrupted. "She had an assistant who tried to kill her, an obsessed fan of McGee's who thought his book was real and tried to kill her, a stalker ex-boyfriend who you thought was trying to kill her until you realized the real person trying to kill her was hired by the defendant in a trial she was about to testify in, a killer who planted a camera on a janitor's cart outside her lab made you think he was coming after her next and an SUV that got the closest of any of them in actually killing her. I was there for most of them."

"I'm not just talking about people who tried to kill her. "

Ziva nodded. "I know."

"She's lost a lot of people close to her."

"We all have Gibbs."

"Yeah." Gibbs nodded. "But she's different."

"I know that too."

"Just listen to me." Ziva closed her mouth and looked at Gibbs silently. "Buying a house, building a family . . . if you're not serious about this Ziva and I get a call from Abby saying you took the baby and left or that you left the baby with her and you left . . ." There was no need for Gibbs to finish that thought.

"It will never happen Gibbs."

Gibbs looked deep into Ziva's eyes. "I know. Just something to think about. I gave Abby the same speech."

"You did?"

"Oh yeah." Gibbs nodded. "You've both had a lot of hurt and loss in your lives. There's no reason to have any more."

"Let us make a deal then." Ziva said as she pushed herself up to more of a sitting position. "If I ever harm Abby in any way, you can kick my ass."

Gibbs put his hand out and waited for Ziva to do the same. He was careful of the IV line as he shook her hand. "Deal."

"What are you two 'dealing' about?" Abby asked from the doorframe.

"Nothing." Ziva and Gibbs both replied.

Abby looked at them both skeptically, but let it go. "Whatever." She handed Ziva a bowl with cinnamon apple oatmeal, a container of strawberry cheesecake yogurt, a banana, small cup of peanut butter and a bottle of orange juice.

"Abby, you are a . . . what is it called again? A send from God?"

"A Godsend." Abby answered.

"Yes. Abby, you are a Godsend." She reached up and brought Abby's face down to hers to give her a thank-you kiss. Nothing PG-13, Gibbs was in the room. And after being unconscious for a few days she didn't have the energy.

"I figured you weren't going to touch whatever they gave you."

"You were right." Ziva said as she took whatever the nurse had given her for breakfast and set it aside. She took the spoon Abby held out and dug into her oatmeal. Abby sat down on the edge of the bed and began eating her fruit cup.

"Shannon craved fruit when she was pregnant too."

Ziva and Abby looked at each other in silent conversation. Ziva went back to eating her oatmeal and Abby hopped off the bed and sat down in the chair next to Gibbs. "I'm sorry Gibbs."

Gibbs nodded. He had everything with Shannon. A home, love, family. Everything he would ever need. She was the reason he couldn't make a relationship work with anyone he dated or married after her. He had already found everything he wanted in his first wife. Subconsciously he didn't want to find real love again as that would be a betrayal to Shannon and Kelly. There wasn't a day that went by that he didn't wonder what Kelly would look like now, what she would have studied in college, what profession she would have chosen. Who she would have grown up to be.

His heart ached for Shannon every day. The more he missed her, the harder he was on his team and the more he reinforced all of his rules. The women he married and dated after her were just placeholders. There was a reason none of his relationships lasted with women. Except for Jenny, but she died, and Ziva and Abby. His relationship with Abby bypassed any of his post-Shannon marriages. Sometime in the course of their relationships Abby and Ziva had become his surrogate daughters. He had lost Ziva several times, but never again would he allow either of the relationships he had with these women to be anything less than one-hundred percent. No matter where any of them were in the world and how far apart they were. He would make it work.

"We'll send you pictures." Abby nudged Gibbs with her shoulder. "Grandpa."

"Yes you will."

"We will be back Gibbs." Ziva said. "Someday we will be back."

"Yeah." Abby added. "When the baby is older we'll be back. We'll be sure to show her your picture so she knows you're her Grandpa Gibbs." Gibbs cracked a smile. "And now that you told Lawrence you are Anna's father, the whole island will have heard by now so it won't be suspicious to have the picture of a strange man up at the house because you're not a strange man." She nudged Gibbs again. "You're Grandpa Gibbs."

"Grandpa Reyes." Gibbs corrected.

"Oh right. Well then we'll just have her call you Grandpa." Abby suggested. "That work Zi?"

Ziva sat there like a deer caught in the headlights with the spoon sticking out of her mouth. She nodded. "Works for me." She mumbled. "But the baby is a 'he.'"

Abby turned back to Gibbs with a smile. "Problem solved."

"What is the baby going to call your parents Abby?" Gibbs knew not to ask Ziva what the baby was going to call he father as she knew the Israeli would give her own life rather than have her child even look at a picture of Eli, much less have a relationship with him.

Now it was Abby's turn to adopt the deep-in-the-headlights look. "Um…"

"Have you told them?" Gibbs asked.

"Of course not. _Ziva_ is dead Gibbs."

He had forgotten about that. A momentary sign of his age he would never admit to. "Do they know about you and Ziva?"

"Of course." Abby bounced over to the hospital bed and snuggled up to Ziva. "They love her."

"I am good with parents." Ziva admitted.

"You'll make a great one too."

Ziva smiled. "Thank-you Gibbs."

Abby rather loudly cleared her throat. "You will too Abby."

Abby smiled. "Thank-you Gibbs."

"Have you two thought of any names yet?" Gibbs asked.

"Ziva is only willing to discuss boy names."

"That is because it is a boy." Ziva said.

"Well" Gibbs began. "It could be a boy." Ziva looked at Abby and smiled smugly. "Or . . . it could be a girl." Abby mirrored Ziva's smug smile right back at her. "Doesn't matter. All that matters is that it's healthy."

Ziva nodded. "Agreed. And that it is a boy."

Abby crossed her arms over her chest. "A healthy baby still needs a name."

"A healthy baby does." All three occupants in the room turned to see Dr. Jacobs standing at the doorway. "And yours is a very healthy baby Anna."

Ziva rubbed her belly. "I am very glad."

Lawrence walked over to Gibbs and held out his hand. "Good to see you again Mr. Reyes."

Gibbs stood and shook the doctor's hand.

"It's good to have family around at times like these."

Gibbs nodded. "I tried to get her brothers to come down here with me, but it's a long flight and they have families, work. You know."

Ziva rolled her eyes. "Is he serious?" She whispered to Abby.

Abby chuckled. "Oh yeah. And I bet their names are Tony and Tim too." She whispered back. "Hey Lawrence. When can I take them home?" She asked with her hand over Ziva's on her very round belly.

"Soon. I just want to do one last scan to make sure nothing has changed since the last one we did before you woke-up. You have a concussion, but I'm guessing you already know that." He explained, gesturing to the chart lying open beside Ziva. Ziva closed the chart and handed it to the doctor. "Your blood pressure has been perfect, but our tests are starting to show that you are anemic."

"I always have been."

"Oh, so then I don't have to say anything on that subject. Do you take iron regularly?"

Ziva nodded.

"Then it was probably just the few days of being in here and not taking it that made your iron levels drop. They should return to normal once you start taking your iron again. Just to be safe though we will give you some before you leave and you should see me in a week or so so I can check your iron levels again. Now, about the concussion."

"Oh, she totally knows how to deal with those." Abby said.

"Have you gotten a concussion before Anna?"

"Several." Abby answered for Ziva. Ziva elbowed Abby.

"She was in a car accident when she was seventeen." Gibbs answered.

"Yes." Ziva agreed. "I was also very active as a child. Soccer ball to the head at age eight, fall from a horse when I was thirteen."

"Wow." Abby mumbled. They were good. And quick. She needed to learn when to keep her mouth shut.

"Just be careful. You don't want to add another one to that list." He turned to Abby. "I'm counting on you to keep her out of this hospital."

"I will do my best." Abby answered. Gibbs raised an eyebrow. "I will keep her out of this hospital Sir."

Lawrence nodded. "Great. Then I will order the CT and if that comes back clear you will be free to go. However, Anna you will have to be on bed rest. We can't risk you going into pre-term labor again and it going too far for us to stop it again. Twenty hours, minimum. We can make an appointment for you to see me in a week back on the island and we can re-evaluate from there."

Ziva let her head fall back against the bed and let out a long, slow breath of air. It was going to be a long week.

* * *

Gibbs set the two now framed photographs he had given to Abby a few days before on one of the bookshelves in the living room. Everyone was there, but now instead of being NCIS Agents Gibbs was Anna's father, Tony and McGee were Anna's half-brothers, Ducky was Kate's father and Palmer her younger, geeky brother. With no pictures of Abby's real family, they worked with what they had and what they had left were Ducky and Palmer. So Abby and Palmer were the children born to older parents and their mother had died from cancer when Abby was fifteen. Rule number seven; always be specific when you lie. Although they hadn't figured out who Jenny was yet. She couldn't be Anna's mother because she had to be Spanish to account for Gibbs' lack of being Spanish and as for being Kate's mother, where would Kate and Palmer's dark hair come from since Jenny is a redhead and Ducky . . . well, he could have had dark hair in his younger days, but probably not.

"Thanks for staying with us for a few days Gibbs."

"Not a problem."

Abby shifted the laundry basket on to her other hip. Gibbs smirked. It was a sight he never expected to see. "I'm gonna go to the basement and throw this into the washer. I'll be right back."

"Abs." Gibbs stopped the scientist before she got very far and took the laundry basket from her. "Go to work. I'll look after Ziva and … do the laundry."

"Thanks Gibbs, but I need to be here. Ziva is not going to stay in bed willingly and-"

"That's why I'm here." He interrupted. "She won't argue with me." Ziva knew better than to argue with Gibbs.

"Yeah, but Gibbs-"

"No buts Abs. You work, that's how you get through things. You almost lost Ziva and the baby. Right now you're ignoring that when you need to be working through it. Go."

Abby opened her mouth to protest, but quickly shut it. Gibbs was right. "I'll just go say bye to Ziva."

"Go Abby. I'll tell her."

Abby nodded and headed toward the door. Gibbs waited until he heard the door close to put the laundry basket down and made his way up to Ziva in her and Abby's bedroom. He lightly knocked on the door. He didn't want to wake her if she was sleeping.

"Come in."

"Just me. I made Abby go to work."

Ziva chuckled. "I am glad you could because I was not doing so well in convincing her that I do not need a babysitter."

"She just wants to help. Make sure you and the baby are okay."

"I know and I appreciate it, but sometimes-"

"You just want to be left alone." Gibbs finished.

"Yes." Ziva sighed, putting the book she had been reading down. "I do not mean that to sound ungrateful for everything that Abby is doing because I am not. I just . . . I am used to doing things for myself and being by myself."

"It's an adjustment.

"Yes."

Gibbs looked around the room and raised an eyebrow. It looked like something out of the page of a magazine he would never buy. If he didn't already know Abby and Ziva he would have made quite a few assumptions about the people who owned this house. But he did know them and so he knew that they were both as far the assumptions that came to mind as they could get. It was far from anything either of them would ever live in as their real selves, so it was perfect.

"Did Abby show you your room?" Ziva asked with a yawn.

"Yeah." Gibbs nodded. "I came up to give you this." He walked over to the bed and handed Ziva something from inside his jacket.

Ziva took the offered gift. "A book of baby names?"

"The baby needs a name Ziva."

"I will think about it."

Gibbs took the book from Ziva and set it on the nightstand. He pulled the covers up, tucking her in as he would have a young child. "Get some sleep."

Ziva yawned, snuggling into her blankets. "Yes Dad."

Gibbs paused by the door and smiled. This bed rest was a good idea. Ziva was more tired than she would ever let on and he bet that by the time he got downstairs she would be fast asleep. "Night Ziva." He flipped the lights off and left his pretend daughter to her beauty rest.

* * *

"Abby, do not get me wrong, the man is the closest thing I have to a father, but I am not naming my child after him." Ziva said with a yawn, reaching out from underneath the covers to check the time on her nightstand clock.

"Why not? Jethro is a good, strong name."

"Besides the fact that I do not want to," Ziva explained. "It is against my religion to name a child after someone still living."

"Oh. I didn't know that." Abby said. "Well we could name her Raven."

"No."

"Wednesday?"

"No."

"Satine?"

"No."

"Ziva are you even listening to me?"

Ziva turned onto her other side. Away from Abby. "No."

"Ziva!"

"What Abby?"

Abby leaned over Ziva and grabbed the baby names book off the nightstand. There were a few moments of silence as Abby read through some names. "What about Penelope?"

"No."

"Ophelia?"

Ziva didn't even have an answer for that. Abby couldn't be serious. She turned onto her back and reached over to turn the page of the book until she found a name more her style. "How about Noah for a boy?"

"Maybe." Abby shrugged. "How about Madelyn?"

"I like it, but every other little girl in the past four years had been named Madelyn."

Abby nodded. "True. Do you want the baby to have a Hebrew name?"

Ziva shook her head. "It does not matter to me."

"Okay." Abby nodded. "Ooh how about Kaia?"

"Kaia." Ziva cocked her head to the side. "I like that."

Abby leaned down to Ziva's belly. "What do you think little one? Are you a Kaia?" She sat back up after a few seconds. "No response. Maybe she doesn't like it."

"Maybe she is asleep. She kept me up all night. It is about time she was tired."

"Aw Zi, why didn't you wake me up?"

"Just because I cannot sleep does not mean that you should not have to. When she is born someone will need to take care of her in the middle of the night." She winked. "Besides, waking you is like waking the dead. Impossible." She closed the book and set it aside. "Abby I think we should wait until the baby is born to choose a name. We need to meet him and see what kind of a person he is."

"Meet _her_ and see what kind of a person _she_ is." Abby corrected. "But don't you think we should have a few names to choose for when the baby is born? And narrow down the list from there once we meet him or her?"

Ziva shook her head. "No. I think the baby will tell us what his name should be." She said with a yawn.

Abby pulled the blankets over Ziva and kissed her on the cheek. "I'll be downstairs if you need anything."

She took the book and quietly slipped out of the bedroom, leaving the door slightly open so she could hear Ziva if she needed anything. She went downstairs in search of her favorite Gibbs. She found him in the basement folding laundry. She really needed to stay on top of that so it didn't get so backed up or they were in for a lot of trouble when the baby came. "Gibbs, can I ask you a question?" She asked as she hopped up onto the washer.

"That was a question Abs."

"Right, but can I ask you another one?"

Gibbs momentarily stopped his task of folding laundry and looked at Abby with a raised eyebrow.

"Right, well I'm just gonna come out and ask you. How . . ." She took a minute. The topic of Shannon and Kelly was always a touchy subject, but she needed to ask someone. And he was her person, the one she went to with all of her life questions. "How did you and Shannon chose Kelly's name?"

Gibbs thought for a moment. "When Shannon first found out that we were pregnant she went out and bought a book of names and chose Kelly."

"Before you had even found out if it was a girl or a boy?"

He nodded. "Shannon said she knew it was a girl."

"Knew or hoped?" Abby asked.

"Knew. She wanted a boy, but she said she knew it was a girl."

"Hinky."

"Mothers intuition."

"So Ziva says it's a boy-"

"Ziva wants it to be a boy."

"But she says she knows it's a boy."

Gibbs shrugged. "Wishful thinking."

"I know, but I can't figure out why. I know she says she wouldn't know how to deal with a girl, but I think a little girl with her curly hair and big brown eyes would be the most adorable thing."

Gibbs chuckled and turned back to the laundry. "She'd scared Abs. All of the women in her life have died; her mother, her sister, even though she didn't know her she couldn't protect Kate from her own brother, she couldn't protect Jenny…She is worried that if this baby is a girl she won't be able to protect her."

Abby nodded in understanding. "She blames herself for not protecting them."

"And herself. She was raped and couldn't protect herself."

"That's crazy Gibbs. She was drugged. It wasn't her fault. If anything it was her father's fault for sending her there."

"Doesn't matter. Ziva sees it as a failure. It doesn't matter that her sister was killed in a suicide bombing Ziva didn't know was going to happen when she was off on a mission. She thinks that she should have been there to save her sister. Her mother died when she Ziva was fifteen. Kate, Jenny…" He closed the dryer door and turned to Abby. "Ziva protects the people she loves. She sees the deaths of her mother, her sister, Kate, Jenny and I'm sure many more, as her fault. She wasn't there, she didn't protect them."

"But she couldn't have known they were going to die."

"No she couldn't." He shook his head. "But she doesn't see it that way." Abby watched as Gibbs took the laundry and climbed the stairs out of the basement.

Abby sat there on the washer for a few more moments. She didn't know how, but somehow she had to convince Ziva that their deaths were not her fault. The only deaths that were her fault were the people she killed. Well, even they weren't her fault because she was either ordered to kill them and had no choice or she had to kill in self defense – but Abby wouldn't bring that up. She had to get Ziva to see that the deaths of her mother and her sister, Kate and Jenny weren't her fault. She hopped off the washer. She would think about that later. For now, while Ziva was napping, she would make a list of names she liked just in case Ziva wanted some suggestions when the big day came. It never hurt to be prepared.


	21. Clean Mind, Clean Soul

Just a short little chapter about a day in the life. I don't own the movie _Hocus Pocus_. I just think it is an awesome movie. And Sean Murray at 16 is simply adorable. I also want to thank everyone who has reviewed. I appreciate it immensely. It helps to know that people are reading and like the story.

VillageVoice

* * *

"Doesn't this kid look like a little McGee?"

Ziva squinted at the TV screen. She, Abby and Gibbs were watching _Hocus Pocus_. "A younger McGee. The boy is about what, sixteen? A much younger McGee . . . but I can see it."

Gibbs looked at Ziva and tied her squinting method. "I don't see it."

"I'm surprised you can see the TV Gibbs." Abby joked, handing him his glasses.

Gibbs put his glasses on. "I still don't see it."

"Gibbs look at him. He's adorable."

"Okay," Ziva began as she gripped the arm rest and Abby's knee and hoisted herself off of the couch. "That is enough movie watching for me."

"What are you talking about Zi, the movie just started?" Abby protested.

"I know, but I have to clean."

"Clean what? We haven't been here long enough to make anything dirty yet."

"We have been here for four weeks. That is plenty of time."

"Has it really only been a month?" Abby questioned. Ziva nodded as she scanned the room for anything out of place. "It seems like longer."

"I agree." The Israeli said as she made her way to the back of the room. "But it has not been."

"Ziva where are you going?"

"I am going to start working on the boxes in the playroom."

Abby groaned and turned back to the movie. This nesting deal was finally rearing its head.

"You have a playroom?" Gibbs asked.

"Oh yeah. Well it's not a playroom yet, but it will be once the baby's here. Right now it's storage." She tucked her legs under herself and turned around, leaning over the back of the sofa. "You're supposed to be on bed rest!" She yelled toward Ziva's general direction.

"I am allowed four hours of freedom a day!" Ziva yelled back.

Abby pursed her lips. "He said twenty hours _minimum_!"

"I am not going to be doing jumping-jacks Abby!"

Abby turned around and sat back down with a huff, her arms folded over her chest. "There is no reasoning with that woman when she's pregnant."

"Just when she's pregnant?" Gibbs asked with a smirk.

Abby laughed and relaxed against the back of the couch. "You're right Gibbs." She turned her head to the left and looked at Gibbs with a smug look on his face. "Not that I'm surprised." She spent the next minute looking from the TV screen to Gibbs back to the TV to the doorway Ziva had disappeared around to the TV to Gibbs back to the doorway. Why did things always happen during her favorite movies?

"Go Abby." Abby looked toward the back of the room. "Halloween's not for another . . . two months? It's only September." It was a Halloween tradition of Abby's that she got through her very extensive collection of Halloween movies during the month of October. She usually started October 1st watching one movie a night up until October 30th. However, her collection had grown in the time of Ziva's absence and so she had a lot more movies to get through and had to start a little earlier than usual. She had grabbed her entire DVD collection when she'd gone back to DC for her visit, but even so it wasn't yet time to begin her yearly Halloween-movie-marathon-tradition. She just wanted to watch _Hocus Pocus_. "You'll have plenty of time to watch this movie"

"I'm going." Abby got up and stopped in front of Gibbs, bending down to his level so he could place a kiss on her cheek. With a smile she skipped off in search of Ziva. "Hey Zi?"

Abby found Ziva in the back corner of the playroom sitting on the floor with a large box tilted on its side in front of her. "Yes Abby?" She asked, not looking away from the contents of the box as she sorted through it. They didn't even have anything to move into the house, she had no idea where all of these documents and such had come from.

"I'm here to help. What would you like me to do?"

"What about your movie?"

"I can watch it later. I just wanted to hang out with you today."

Ziva looked up from the box. "I am sorry Abby I didn't realize. I assumed you would want to spend time with Gibbs as his flight leaves tonight."

Abby carefully navigated her way through the maze of boxes and moved a few away so she could make a clear spot to sit beside Ziva. "I spent time with Gibbs." She nudged Ziva. "Now I want to spend some time with you. Is that okay?" She didn't mean it to come out harsh, she genuinely wanted to know because if Ziva needed some space she would give it to her. "Because if you'd rather be alone-"

Ziva reached over and took hold of Abby's chin, bringing her close enough to place a gentle kiss on her cherry-red lips. "It is always okay."

Abby smiled and pulled over a box. "How do we have so much stuff? Where did it all come from?" She pulled out handfuls of various papers and wrappers.

"I do not know." Ziva answered. A silence came over both of them as they sorted the things they would keep and threw the stuff to be thrown out across the room into a box by the door to the kitchen. "Ow." Ziva brought a hand to her stomach and struggled to catch her breath.

"What happened? Are you okay?" Abby was immediately on alert. If Ziva was in pre-term labor again she would strap her to the bed and never let her leave.

Ziva coughed. "I am fine." She took a few deep breaths. "The baby has a good kick."

Abby brought her hands to rest over Ziva's belly. She smiled. "I can see that. We'll have to get her into soccer."

Ziva smiled. "Perhaps." Arguing with Abby about the sex didn't seem like the best use of her energy anymore. And she was beginning to believe that having a girl wouldn't be as bad as she had originally thought. Abby's hands stayed glued to Ziva's belly as the Israeli went back to sorting through the box. "I need something to do."

Abby turned her attention away from Ziva's belly as the baby ceased its movements and back to the box in front of her. "You're already doing something."

"I need to do something active. I cannot sit here getting . . . fat. I have gone running every day that I have been pregnant, with the exception of those few weeks I was sick. How am I supposed to get my body ready for labor and birth and keep in shape when I can't do anything? I have four hours, but I am not even allowed to get my heart rate up to anything that would do my body any good."

"What about your yoga classes? Yoga's supposed to be non-stressful, right?"

Ziva nodded. "It can be. However I had to cancel all my classes when I was put on bed rest."

"You could still teach like one or two classes a week. One a day or every other would still be complying with your bed rest. You know bed rest doesn't mean you have to be in bed. Just resting and sitting as much as possible. And as you said, you have four hours. Just teach one class."

Ziva took a minute to consider what Abby had said.

"And we have your follow-up appointment with Lawrence tomorrow. Maybe he'll change your incarceration order." She joked.

"I will ask him tomorrow about the yoga. It is a good idea." She leaned over and placed a sweet, gentle kiss on Abby's lips. "Thank-you."

Abby winked. "Anytime."

"I would like us to go out sometime."

"Okay." Abby nodded, not taking her eyes of the messy contents of the box in front of her.

"Not just to go out, but on a date." Abby's head popped up. "It just . . . it seems like it has been a long time since we have gone out on a date."

"It hasn't been all that long Zi."

"When was the last time?" She asked.

"I don't know." Abby tried to think. "Things have been crazy the last month with becoming new people - again, moving here, settling in, the new jobs and then I went back to DC and you had your fall. I can't remember."

Ziva nodded, looking down at her hands. "We have not had a date since we've been here."

"But we do stuff together all the time Zi."

"It is not the same." Ziva said with a shake of her head.

"Okay, so they may not be called dates, but we do date-like stuff all the time. We have dinner, we go to the beach, we watch movies, go to the park, to a game. There aren't many places to go around here, but I like what we do. Especially our post-date activities." She wiggled her eyebrows.

Ziva let out a short, almost sad chuckle. "Which we have not done in a week."

"That's because of your bed rest." She laid a supportive and understanding hand on Ziva's knee, rubbing soothing circles. "We're still in the process of moving in and getting to know the people around us, starting new jobs. We went out all the time while we were traveling. We'll get there again."

"When Abby? Not before the baby comes because even if Dr. Jacobs lessens my bed rest I will still need to be in bed for most of the day. And not after because we will have the baby and then we will be lucky if we get time to sleep, never mind sit and have a conversation. Everything is happening so fast. I d . . . I . . ." She shrugged.

Abby moved the boxes to the side and gathered Ziva in her arms. "Shh…It's okay sweetie. We'll do something. We're Abby and Ziva. We've had our lives threatened, we managed to create a relationship even though we worked 24/7, we've been all around the world… a little time constraint isn't going to stop us." Ziva chuckled. "I love you." She kissed the top of Ziva's head. "We don't need to date anymore. Dating is to find out about each other and gauge how long you could stand to have your partner around for. I knew from our first date, cruising around on my Harley that I was going to want to keep you around for a while."

Ziva laughed. "That was an amazing weekend."

"Yeah, see. We can still do that. Well obviously not here cause there are no roads and not when you're pregnant cause it's not safe, but after the baby comes we can hire a sitter, rent a bike and spend a day just driving. Our lives aren't going to end when you have the baby."

Ziva took a deep breath and slowly let it out. "You are right I'm sorry. Hormones." She explained.

Abby smiled. "I like the hormones. I hope they stick around. If they don't well then we'll just have to keep you pregnant all the time."

Ziva scoffed. "I think not."

Abby stood up and held her hands out to Ziva. "Then I guess I'll just have to hope that some of these hormones stick around."

Ziva wiped her eyes and took Abby's hands, pulling herself up with the taller woman's help. "I am looking forward to the day when I can get up without help."

"I know you are. But you know it's not such a horrible thing to need help once in a while." She wrapped her arms as tightly as she could around the Israeli, smiling as she felt the baby kick between them.

"Thank-you." Ziva whispered into Abby's hair.

"For what?"

"For being here. I have never had a serious relationship before you. I dated and I slept with people, but it never went any further than that." She pulled back and tucked a stray lock of hair behind Abby's ear so she could look into her eyes. "I have learned a lot. And I am glad that it was you who taught me."

Not it was Abby's turn for tears. She took a breath and choked back as much of the tears as she could. "You should write a book." They both laughed. "No really. You're very good with words."

Ziva reached up and wiped Abby's eyes with a single finger. "I have not always been so good at expressing how I feel. I am glad that my words touch you so deeply." She noticed that glint in Abby's eyes. That glint that almost always ended with some post-date activity or another regardless of whether or not they had been on a date prior to the glint appearing. However, Ziva needed to keep her heart rate down and as such the bedroom . . . or any room really, was staying PG rated. She gave Abby a gentle push toward the door. "You need to take Gibbs to the airport and I need to take a nap."

"I wanna take a nap." Abby protested.

"You need to take Gibbs-"

"Yeah yeah, to the airport I know." She put her arms out at the doorframe, refusing to budge another inch. She pouted. "I'll join you when I get back?"

Ziva smiled and took a few slow steps towards Abby. Sure she was in her third trimester, but she could still pull off sexy. She gently grasped Abby's face with both hands and slowly brought the scientist in for a slow kiss. "As long as you only intend on sleeping."

Abby winked. "Of course." She snuck another kiss before skipping back into the living room. Ziva watched from the doorway as Abby basically bounced over to Gibbs and threw her arms around his neck in an excited hug. She cast a glance around the playroom. It had looked better before she had decided to start '_cleaning_' it up, but it could wait until later. There was someone she had to say good-bye to.

* * *

Gibbs looked out the window from his seat in first class on a plane bound for Paris. It would take longer to go from Australia to Paris then onto DC, but there needed to be as little a trail left as possible. He looked away from the window once he was sure they weren't going to head straight into the ocean below. He wasn't used to first class, much less a seat in a normal, commercial plane. He was more of a cargo hold kind of guy. They were what he knew. He trusted them. He reached a hand into his jacket pocket and pulled out the envelope Abby had handed him before he boarded.

_"It's from Ziva and Me."_

He gentle pulled off the tape holding the envelope closed and pulled out the contents within.

_'Dear Gibbs-_

_The circumstances under which you came to be here weren't exactly the best, but we are glad that you got to come. To see what we have made for ourselves and that we're okay. I know it doesn't need to be said, but please don't tell anyone Ziva's alive, where we are, what we're doing or about the baby. Take this picture though. You can say it was taken before everything happened and yeah. We'll get you a picture of the baby once it's born . . . somehow. We love you Gibbs._

_Love,  
Your Girls'_

Gibbs put the letter back in the envelope - he would burn it later, and turned the picture over. He smiled. They were his girls, Abby and Ziva. Blood didn't determine who was a parent. He was more of a father to Ziva than Eli David would ever be. He lowered his chair back and closed his eyes. He would find a special place for them. There was an empty space beside the picture of Kelly and Shannon he had taped up on his workbench. It was only fitting that his other two girls went there as well.


	22. Surprises

Only 8 more chapters left. Hope you enjoy it.

VillageVoice

* * *

"So everything's fine?" Abby asked nervously as she gave Ziva's hand a supportive squeeze.

Dr. Lawrence Jacobs nodded as he squeezed some ultrasound gel onto Ziva's exposed belly. "Better than fine. I know it wasn't easy, but you did a good job of staying on the bed rest and resting as much as you could."

"Does that mean I can be off the bed rest now?" Ziva asked.

Dr. Jacobs looked at Ziva with a raised eyebrow before turning on the ultrasound machine.

Ziva looked up at Abby. Abby leaned down and placed a kiss on Ziva's forehead. "It's okay."

"Ten little fingers, ten little toes." Abby and Ziva's heads snapped to the screen. Smiles came to both their faces as they looked up at the little baby kicking on the monitor. "Perfect size, the belly's nice and round, amniotic fluid level is good, good movement. Have you felt any contractions?"

Ziva shook her head. "No."

"Any pain or cramping?"

"No."

"Any pressure? Aching anywhere?"

"No."

"Fever? General feeling of not being well?"

"No."

"Any pain when I press on your belly?"

Ziva laid there as the doctor pressed on her belly until she was certain she felt no pain. "No."

"Okay." He turned back to the ultrasound machine and pressed some buttons to take measurements as he double checked everything. "Yep. Everything looks great. Are you sure you don't want to know the sex?"

"No." The women replied in unison.

"I am assuming you would like a picture?"

Abby nodded when Ziva didn't respond. "Yeah. Thanks."

"Sure thing." He handed Ziva a towel to wipe the gel off her belly while he made some notes in her chart and waited for the picture to print out. "You aren't even dilated anymore. We call it backwards dilation. Basically when labor slows down the body isn't having contractions anymore and if the baby's head isn't pressing on the cervix your cervix can close back up. However you did go into pre-term labor only a week ago, but you have done well on bed rest and everything looks absolutely fine so I would be comfortable with reducing your bed rest to twelve hours."

Ziva smiled. Twelve hours was a lot better than twenty.

"But I still want you taking it easy. Lay down when you can. Don't stay on your feet too much and I want you to say well hydrated. When you're not well hydrated your blood volume decreases, increasing the concentration of oxytocin. As I explained in the hospital, oxytocin is the hormone that causes uterine contractions. Keeping well hydrated will increase your blood volume and keep the oxytocin from increasing. Sound good?"

Ziva nodded.

"Would you be interested in a four-D ultrasound?" Ziva looked up at Abby. She had no idea what a four-D ultrasound was. "We just ordered a new ultrasound machine. This one is getting old and the new one is capable of doing both the standard ultrasound and four-D imaging. It should be here early next week. We would be able to use it for your next ultrasound, if you'd like?"

"What is four-D?" Ziva asked.

"It shows the baby in a four-dimensional image rather than a two-dimensional image." He explained.

Ziva looked up at Abby. "Normal ultrasounds are two-dimensional. You can see the baby's profile and some of its features, but not clearly." Abby explained as Dr. Jacobs handed over the ultrasound photo. "It looks more like an x-ray." She explained further, showing Ziva the picture. "A four-dimensional ultrasound looks more realistic, you can see every feature clearly like a picture."

Ziva nodded. "Oh." She looked at Abby and shook her head.

Abby turned to the good doctor "No thanks Lawrence. It's good to be able to see what the baby looks through the regular ultrasounds, but we don't want to see exactly what she's going to look like."

"Yes." Ziva added. "We would like to wait until the baby is born to see what he looks like."

The doctor nodded. "Fair enough."

"I have a question." Ziva began. "I taught yoga at the dance studio a couple of days a week. Would it be safe for the baby if I went back to teaching one class?"

"How many times a week?"

"Twice or I could also do a once a week class."

"How long?"

"An hour twice a week or two hours once a week."

He took a minute to think. "One hour twice a week. Go back to teaching the class this week and we can re-evaluate at your next appointment." Ziva big smile broke out over Ziva's face and her eyes lit up in a way Abby hadn't seen in a while. "But if anything happens-"

"I will stop." Ziva assured.

He looked at Abby. "I'm counting on you to watch her."

"Have no fear, Katie Biggs is here." Ziva rolled her eyes. Either Abby needed more hours at the lab or Ziva was going to have to hide her DVD collection. She slowly turned around and looked at Abby with a look that clearly read, _'really?' _"I've got her. Baby kicks the wrong way and the classes are done and she's on 24/7 bed rest."

Ziva looked horrified. Jacobs nodded. "Good. I'll see you in a week."

"Kate, can you go and book the appointment for next week?" Ziva asked. "I still have some of this … gel on my belly."

Abby nodded and with a kiss to Ziva's cheek left the room to go book the appointment. "I have another question."

"Don't you want to wait until you're . . . ah, until Kate gets back?"

Ziva shook her head. "No. I need to ask you without her in the room because it is about her. About us. About our . . . intimate life."

"Oh." It took Lawrence a minute to get what Ziva was talking about. Which was surprising to Ziva. It was her experience that men were usually pretty quick with anything having to do with sex. Especially sex between two women – With each other. If Tony was here he would have understood the question before she even asked it. "Oh. Um," He cleared his throat. "Wha-what about it?"

"We have not had sex since the night before Kate went home for the wedding. Is it safe for us to have sex again?"

"You don't beat around the bush, do you?"

"What bush?"

"You ready?"

Ziva jumped at the sudden appearance of another person in what was supposed to be a very secret conversation. She smiled at Abby and nodded. "Yeah."

"Anna?" Ziva paused at the door and took the piece of paper Lawrence handed her. Once outside she opened the paper and smiled.

"Everything okay Zi?"

Ziva threw the paper into the trash and reached out for Abby's hand, entwining their fingers together. "Perfect."

* * *

"I find it disturbing that the same man I go to for my female exams lives right next door."

"He doesn't live next door Zi. He's at least a twenty minute walk away."

Ziva looked across the room as she took a sip of her water. "I find it…creepy."

Abby followed Ziva's gaze behind her and saw none other than Lawrence Jacobs sitting at a table directly across the room from them. "It's creepy because he's here?"

"Yes." Ziva whispered. "You tell me how awkward it is after you have a female exam and then see your doctor at a restaurant." As if he could sense someone looking at him, Lawrence turned and looked right at Abby and Ziva. Greeting them with a wave. A chill ran up Ziva's spine.

Abby turned back around. "I see your point."

Ziva nodded. "Thank-you."

They turned back to their menus and sat in silence as they both pretended to be looking over the menus. Ziva kept looking over her menu at the table across the room. Abby kept looking around her and fidgeting. "Can we go somewhere else?" Ziva asked.

"I thought you'd never ask."

xxxxxxxxxx

"Abby" Ziva began as she and Abby walked hand-in-hand along the beach. Right along the surf, their shoes long forgotten. "When I was in Israel-"

"Which time?"

Ziva stopped walking, forcing Abby to stop too. She spoke only when Abby looked up at her. Abby never liked Ziva going back to Israel and now with good reason. "The last time. When I was in Israel for eighteen months, did you still consider us to be together?"

"Did I still think of us as a couple?" Ziva nodded. "I never stopped. Did you?"

"No. Of course not. I was just making sure that you did because if you did than it seems that we have missed something." She reached up to tuck a stray tendril behind the scientist's ear.

Abby leaned into Ziva's touch as her hand lingered on her cheek. "What?"

"It is September."

Abby blinked a couple of times, but made no response.

"We started dating in July."

Abby's eyes shot open wide in realization. "Ziva! We missed our three-year anniversary!"

"Well, we did not miss it exactly. We were there. We just did not remember the date's significance or celebrate it." Ziva explained. Anniversaries weren't very important to her, but they were to the woman she loved.

"Where were we in July?"

"Many places. We were deciding on where we wanted to settle down."

"That would explain not remembering it." She threw her arms around Ziva's neck and buried her face in Ziva's hair. "I am so, so sorry."

"It is not only you who did not remember Abby."

"Yeah, but I have no excuse."

"And I do?" Ziva asked.

"Yes." Abby began, pulling away. "You've got crazy pregnancy hormones, not that I'm calling you crazy, because you're not, but the hormones, they're…crazy. Not you. But that's not the point. The point is you're growing a human being and you were trying to keep us safe and coming up with new names and cities every other day. I should have helped you more." She looked down at her feet. She was just now realizing everything Ziva had been doing for them in addition to her pregnancy and sometimes not feeling well. She never once complained.

Ziva cupped Abby's face, but when the other woman refused to lift her head at Ziva's gentle prodding the Israeli dipped her head down and brought Abby up with a kiss.

"That's not fair." Abby protested, fighting back a smile.

"I fight dirty." Ziva shrugged.

Abby chuckled. "I know." She sighed. "How could I forget out anniversary?"

"It doesn't matter. We both forgot. But we have plenty of time."

Abby wiggled her eyebrows. "To do what?"

Ziva winked. "To celebrate."

* * *

"You know Zi, I never would have thought you were the carnival type of person."

Ziva looked over at Abby and laughed. The cotton candy she was eating – well, more like devouring, had to be bigger than the Goth's head. Abby was not going to sleep tonight with the ridiculous amounts of sugar she was consuming. But that was all part of Ziva's master plan. "I am not." She finally responded. "But I like to try new things."

"Oh really?" Abby tested, holding her cotton candy up to Ziva.

Ziva made a face, but slowly leaned forward and took a bite out of the cotton candy. After all, she had tried some of Abby's Caf-Pow before and it was actually quite good. Abby's tastes weren't all that bad. "Mmm. This is good."

"Yeah." Abby agreed. "Hey!"

Ziva ripped the cotton candy out of Abby's hand. "Mine now."

"I don't think so."

"But the baby likes it Abby." Ziva pouted.

Abby folded her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes as she attempted to stare Ziva down. Ziva took a defiant bite and walked away. She walked the few steps back to the stand and picked a fresh cotton candy. Abby smiled. "Thank-you."

Ziva held the new one away and handed Abby hers back. "You wanted yours back."

Abby stuck out her tongue. "I did. Thanks."

"You are welcome."

After staring at each other for a few more seconds both women erupted in laughter. Abby pointed out a spot on the sand away from the all the action. "I like it here." Ziva said.

Abby looked over at the carnival. "Hey, any place that throws a carnival on the beach is good with me."

Ziva smiled and nodded. It wasn't a big carnival, a couple of rides had been ferried in and there were some people playing instruments, mainly kids in the school band, a play going on, some little activity and food stations provided by various people on the island. "_Some good, clean fun._" They said. And it was. Except for the cotton candy melting over their fingers faster than they could eat it.

"Think they're gonna miss us?" Abby asked, cuddling up against Ziva.

Ziva looked over at the various groups of people mingling around. She and Abby had been hanging out with Samantha, Lucinda, Gwen and some of the other women they had become friends with. She shook her head and held Abby closer. They had spent most of the afternoon being social. Now it was time for some alone time. It was their anniversary after all – well, their two month late anniversary celebration. "I think they will understand."

Abby laid her head on Ziva's shoulder and let out a contented sigh. They sat there for a few more minutes silently enjoying the other's company and watching the sunset over the carnival. Once the sun had set Ziva kick started her plan into action. "Do you think you can survive without me for a few minutes?"

Abby chuckled. She loved how much Ziva had changed and relaxed in the few months they had gotten away from DC and Mossad and NCIS. She was able to just be herself and live. She smiled up at Ziva. "I guess that depends on why."

Ziva placed a chaste kiss on Abby's head and stood up. "It is a surprise." She squatted down and captured the taller woman's lips with her own in a kiss that left them both breathless. "You will not regret it."

Abby swatted Ziva's backside as the Israeli sauntered off in the direction of their house. "I better not!"

"You better not what?"

Abby turned around and smiled. "I better not regret letting her go."

The woman sat down next to Abby, taking up the vacant spot just vacated by Ziva. "Well I hope you didn't let her go too far." She joked.

"She sent you to keep me down here didn't she?"

The blonde woman winked.

Abby chuckled. "Thanks Lil." Lillian Blake was about Ziva's age and had quickly become friends with both Ziva and Abby. Before Ziva and Abby came to the island, she was its newest occupant having moved from England six years earlier. She was the resident florist on the island and was single handedly responsible for all of the beautiful landscapes, flowerbeds, trees, bushes and indoor floral arrangements on the island. Before her arrival there had been sand, grass and a few sparse trees. She certainly had left her mark. She and Abby had become fast friends the first time Abby stepped into Lil's shop and saw black roses.

"Anytime. So what's going on tonight anyway? Why do I have to keep you down here?"

"We're celebrating our anniversary tonight."

"Oh why didn't you tell me?! Happy anniversary. How long?"

"Three years." Abby said with a smile. "But it's not tonight. It was in July. We both kind of . . . forgot."

Lil chuckled. "At least you're celebrating it now."

"Yeah."

"Any idea what Anna's doing up there?"

Abby looked in the general direction of her house. If she squinted she could just see the lights of the house, but it wasn't yet dark enough and the house was too far away for her to have any idea what Ziva was doing. "Not a clue."

"So how did you two manage to miss your anniversary?"

"It's a long story."

"We've got half an hour."

"What? She said a few minutes. What a liar."

They both laughed. "Well it is a few minutes. You know, thirty few minutes." Lil explained.

Abby chuckled. "Okay, so we were traveling for the few months before we moved here. I guess we lost track of time. Sometimes we'd stay in one place for a week, sometimes we'd see several cities in a week." She left out the part about being on the run for their lives. That tended to shift anyone's priorities to one thing – survival. "Before we knew it we moved here and missed our anniversary." She paused a minute. "I guess it's not that long of a story."

"Where did you go?"

"Everywhere."

"I'm going to travel someday. I've only been over Europe and here."

Abby smiled. "It was awesome."

"What was your favorite place?"

"Paris."

Lil nodded. "The city of love. I myself have had an affair or two in the French capital."

Abby cast Lil a look. "Of course you did."

Lil shrugged. It was no secret that Lil was enjoying her youth sewing her wild oats. "Hey. It's not like I'm looking like the cover of some family magazine practically married, expecting a baby and buying a house. That's all you. I like going out all night, waking up beside someone new every morning not remembering their name and puking my guts up all day while dealing with an unbearable migraine. It's a good time."

Abby sighed. "I remember those days. Well, not about waking up next to some random person every morning, but the going out all night and getting passed-out drunk."

"You miss those days?"

"No." Abby shook her head. "I'm still going to be up all night and have splitting headaches, but for a different reason. Gotta grow-up sometime."

"Yeah." Lil sighed. "Maybe in a few years."

Abby laughed.

"Well, you know, in a few years you'll actually have a reason to go see little kid movies. And someone age appropriate to go with."

"There's always that." Abby agreed.

"I had a kid once. Did I ever tell you that?"

Abby's had whipped around. "What? No."

"I did." Lil nodded. "I was seventeen. It was a little boy with blonde curls and these big blue eyes. My Mom and my step-dad kicked me out when I told them I was pregnant and the baby's father refused to take responsibility. Here" She grabbed her wallet out of her bag and showed Abby a picture of her and the baby. "I had one of the nurses take a picture of him and me before I gave him over to his adoptive parents."

"He's adorable."

Lil smiled. "Yeah. I wanted to name him Henry. Of course I don't know what his adoptive parents named him. He'd be thirteen this year."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It'll happen again. When the time is right. We all have our time." She cast a quick glance through the thin path to Abby and Ziva's house and looked back at Abby. "Your time is now."

Abby thanked Lil and followed the path to her house. With each step the fluttering low in her belly grew stronger, her excitement becoming almost unbearable. When she finally got to the front door she took a few deep breaths before pushing the door open. "Wow."

Ziva came through the door from the _'formal room'_ as they had taken to calling it looking absolutely breathtaking. Abby had never really believed in the saying 'weak in the knees,' but this was pretty damn close. She was wearing a short-sleeve off the shoulder knee-length deep emerald dress with side rouching detailing that hugged her new pregnancy curves in all the right places and a pair of mile high heels Abby was surprised didn't have Ziva toppling over herself. "For some reason I feel like I should be dressed . . . differently."

Ziva smiled and took a few slow steps closer to Abby. She was determined to use the idiom right. "If you play your cards right . . . yes?" Abby nodded. "If you play your cards right pretty soon you won't be dressed at all." She closed the distance between her and Abby and captured Abby's lips. The kiss was deep and passionate and left both women breathless. A kiss so hot and so deep that neither wanted to come up for air.

"Give me five minutes to change?" At Ziva's nod Abby gave her a quick kiss and bolted up the stairs.

True to her word Abby came down the stairs four minutes and fifty-nine seconds later. Her hair was down, which was pretty much all she did with it now since it was so much shorter than what she was used to, but she had ran a brush through it and put on her favorite little black dress. She found it when she and Ziva went on their mega shopping spree when they first moved to the island. It was a simple a-line silhouette with v-neck and, true to Abby fashion, red beaded detailing under the chest. She looked damn good and she knew it.

Ziva was ready with a full champagne flute when Abby rounded the corner. She handed it to Abby. "For you." She held her own glass up. "Ginger ale for me." The Israeli waited until Abby had taken a sip and sampled the champagne before she took her by the hand and led her into the formal room. With a big, bright smile on her face she turned to Abby. "What do you think?"

If Abby's jaw hadn't been attached it would have fallen to the floor. "Wow." Was, yet again, the only thing that seemed to do Ziva any justice. The entire room was covered in candles. There was no way she was able to set this all up in the thirty minutes she had. There was a roaring fire in the fireplace bathing the room in warmth and light. The dark burgundy curtains were all drawn closed eliminating all traces of outside light. In front of the fireplace was a bed of black and crimson velvet blankets and sheets.

"That is for later." Ziva explained, taking Abby by the hand through the formal room into the dining room, which was also only lit by candlelight.

Abby squeezed Ziva's hand and placed a gentle kiss on her cheek. "You made my favorite."

"Gibbs gave me the recipe."

Abby turned toward Ziva with as much love shining through her eyes as she could manage as she gently placed her hands on either side of Ziva's face. "You are too good to me." She guided Ziva's lips to meet her own.

Ziva pulled away before the kiss could get very far. "First, we need to eat. If we don't it is very likely that I won't make it through the rest of the evening's activities."

"Activities, huh?" Abby winked. "Can't wait." She gave Ziva another quick kiss and then headed toward the table. "Oh wait. I'll be right back."

Ziva nodded and chuckled as Abby bolted out of the room. She sat down and took a couple of bites of the freshly baked bread Ernie's wife had dropped off when she and Abby were at the carnival. By the time Abby came back Ziva had eaten most of her salad and all but one singular ravioli of her cheese and broccoli ravioli. She grinned sheepishly at Abby. She rarely stopped with one serving lately, so she and Abby would still get to eat together. Growing a baby was hard work that required a full supply of energy.

Abby, however, was too excited to even notice. She came to an abrupt stop in front of Ziva and held out a silver box. "I got this for you. Well, for us."

Ziva stood up and took the box. Inside it, among pink and blue tissue paper were two circular silver loops on silver chains. "They're beautiful."

"I got two of them, one for each of us. The guy at the store where I got them said that he can engrave the baby's name and birth date once she's born. See, it even has the October birthstone. The baby's due the third week of October, so hopefully she will be born in October. If not though, the guy said he can just change out the stones." Abby explained as she fastened the necklace around the Israeli's neck.

Ziva took out the last pendant and looked at it for a minute. Right now it was just a plain silver loop with two little stones opposite each other on either side. Opals, as was the birthstone for October. Opals came in a wide variety of colors. Most commonly white, but they also came in pale red, pale yellow, grey or even black. Abby of course had voted for black, but when they talked about which stone they wanted to use for the baby when they were out shopping one day they had decided on the pale yellow opal, which was what was on either side of the loops. Ziva could picture their baby boy's name engraved across the top, or she was even willing to entertain the idea of possibly a baby girl's name. She smiled and clasped the thin chain around Abby's neck. "I love them." She kissed Abby. "Thank-you."

It wasn't long before the dinner was forgotten and Abby and Ziva were nestled together among a sea of black and crimson velvet in front of the roaring fire. Ziva had a surprising amount of stamina for a woman a mere six weeks away from her due date. A fact both women used to their full advantage. Neither was heard of for the rest of the weekend.


	23. Another Surprise and a Shower

I got a new laptop! I am very excited to start writing on it! Well, not for this story. I've already written the last chapter. But maybe with a new laptop comes a new muse. One who actually does her job. Anway, just 7 chapters left until the end. Review and let me know what you think.

VillageVoice

* * *

Abby maneuvered her way down the stairs down into the basement. It was hard to see the steps with the size of the laundry pile in the basket she was carrying. "Ziva put the iron down."

Ziva didn't put it down, but she moved it away from the tiny garment she had been ironing. "Why?"

Abby put the laundry basket beside the washer and walked over to Ziva. "Because," She began, taking the iron and setting it to the side. "Baby clothes don't need to be ironed."

Ziva pondered for a minute. "You are right. It is just putting germs right back on the clothes. I will wash them again."

Abby took the tiny jacket away before Ziva could attack it with the iron again. "Ziva you're thirty-six weeks pregnant. Go lay down or something."

Ziva folded her arms over her chest and fixed her gaze on Abby. "And why would I do that?"

"Maybe because you're exhausted and you don't need to be doing this. The clothes will start to wear out before the baby even wears them if you keep this up."

"I see your point."

"I'll make you a deal. We haven't taken a bubble bath in a while. I'll start a load of laundry while you go and run the bath." She ran her hand down the side of Ziva's face. "And I'll be up as soon as I'm done." She leaned in and kissed the Israeli. "Sound good?"

Ziva winked and headed toward the stairs without a word.

xxxxxxxxxx

Once Abby had finished with the laundry she headed upstairs into their bedroom to find no Ziva. She shrugged. She was probably in the bathroom running the bath. However, there was no running water to be heard. She hadn't been doing the laundry long enough for the tub to be full yet. She opened the bathroom door. No Ziva, no running water and no full bathtub. "Ziva?"

Abby shook her head and made her way back out through the master suite and down the stairs. "I seriously need to put a GPS in her shoes." She wasn't in the library, not in the living roomm, she hadn't gone back into the basement to find Abby. "ZIVA" She yelled.

"In the kitchen."

Abby threw her hands in the air. It was always the last place you looked. But then, Abby rationalized, it was always the last place you looked because you always find whatever you're looking for in the last place you look because there wouldn't be any reason to keep looking after that. "Zi what are you doing?"

Ziva sat on one of the stools around the island with what had to be every single knife they had displayed in front of her. "I am sharpening the knives."

"Any particular reason?"

"They need to be ready."

"For what?" Abby questioned. "Dinner?"

"What I told you before Abby, about not having to forget all of yourself when you become someone new?" Abby nodded. "It's not only because you cannot completely re-invent yourself or so that you do not forget who you are," She put the knife down and picked up another "But it is also because it is too hard. It is too hard to forget who you are and all the things you loved."

Abby pursed her lips and nodded her head slowly. "Okay let's go."

Ziva took the offered hand and let Abby lead her out of the kitchen. "Where are we going?"

Abby took the two bags off the hooks by the door and handed Ziva hers and slung her own over her shoulder. "We're going to make sure you remember."

"Remember what?"

"You'll see."

* * *

"I know you'd never forget it Zi, but sometimes it just feels good to have a little reminder. And it's like you said, it's too hard to forget all the things you loved."

Ziva looked out at the open range in front of them. "Is this safe?"

"No one on the island knows we're here and it's far enough away from the dock on the mainland. I called a couple of days ago to book the range – under a different name of course. We have it for two hours." She used a key to open the closet and scanned it for a few seconds before choosing the perfect piece and handing it out to Ziva. "You prefer the Sig right?"

Ziva grabbed Abby's face and brought their lips together in a crashing kiss. "You are amazing."

Abby shrugged. "I do try."

Ziva gave Abby another kiss before taking the gun and moving to the firing line.

"Ah-ah-ah." Ziva lowered the gun and looked over at Abby. "Here" Abby walked over to Ziva. "First, you need this." She explained, handing Ziva a long, circular tube like piece. "A silencer. Loud noises aren't good for the baby nor you as the baby's reaction to the noise could make you quite sick."

Ziva took the silencer and attached it to her gun. "Good idea." She held the gun up and aimed again.

"AH. Not yet." She pulled a mask out of her back pocket and handed it to Ziva. "And don't fight me about it because you are not going to win. Bullets carry lead, gunshots throw lead into the air. It will go from the air into your bloodstream to the placenta to the baby and lead can cause serious brain damage to developing fetuses. I tried to find some lead-free bullets, but I couldn't, so put the mask on."

"We are outside Abby-"

"Put it on or we're leaving."

Ziva put the mask on and smiled. Not that Abby could tell. She waited to see if there was anything else Abby had for her. Which of course there was. "Gloves?"

Abby nodded. "Yes. Did you miss my lead speech? It gets on your hands and can get into your bloodstream that way too."

Without a word of complaint Ziva took the gloves and put them on. She felt more like she was preparing for surgery rather than shooting a gun – something she had been doing since her hands were big enough to hold one.

Abby thought of the earmuffs sitting back over on the bench, but they seemed like overkill with the silencer. She smiled and she leaned forward to place a kiss on Ziva's cheek. "Have fun."

Ziva waited until Abby was far enough away before raising the gun and taking her first shot.

By the time she was finished a couple dozen targets no longer had heads and a dozen others needed immediate heart transplants. She picked up the couple dozen shells, took the silencer off the nozzle, cleaned both the gun and the silencer and returned the gun to its resting place in the closet before taking all of her protective gear off and shoved it all into her bag. Fingerprints stick to gloves, and there had to be some DNA containing sweat in her mask and she wasn't about to leave any of that lying around. No matter how remote the chances of it getting picked up by someone who means her harm.

She walked over to the bench where Abby was sitting reading probably the last pregnancy book she had yet to read five times. She knew what was going on with Ziva's body more than the former Mossad officer did herself. She handed the silencer back to Abby and smiled. "Thank-you. I needed that."

Abby smiled back. "I'm glad I could help."

Ziva shifted uncomfortably. "I know that I do not always express my feelings or say what I need-"

Abby stood up and grabbed the front pockets of Ziva's jacket to pull her closer. "Ziva David I know you like the back of my hand. You don't have to say anything for me to know."

Ziva kissed Abby and rested her forehead against the taller woman's. "I love you."

"Well that you can say anytime you want."

"I love you." Ziva repeated.

Abby smiled and captured Ziva's lips in another kiss. "I love you too. Now-"

"Wait Abby. While I am expressing my feelings let me continue." Abby looked up at Ziva and let her continue. "I . . . Abby I never thought I would have any of this." She shrugged and shook her head. "Not a home, not a baby, not a family. I just want you to know that I am glad that I have it. And I am glad that I have it with you. If it wasn't for you I would still be in Mossad living a life I had no interest in living. You saved me Abby."

Abby wrapped her arms around Ziva's neck and brought her in for a kiss that probably should not have taken place in such a public place. "I don't think anything I say will match that."

"You don't have to say anything. I just want you to know."

"I love you."

Ziva smiled and placed another kiss on Abby's lips. "I love you too. Now let's go home. I think it is time for a nap."

"Sounds like a plan."

* * *

Ziva flipped on the light switch and immediately brought her hand to where her gun would be holstered had she had a gun.

"SURPRISE!"

Ziva leaned over to Abby. "Forget to lock the door again Abby?"

Abby smiled sweetly and shrugged.

"And I'm the one with pregnancy head."

"Pregnancy brain." Abby corrected.

"Yes, well at least I remember to lock the door." Ziva retorted before going and greeting her guests.

Abby chuckled and winked at Sam who was standing by the stairs before joining Ziva in the formal room. "You guys! This is . . ." She trailed off as she couldn't quite think of what it was. It was thoughtful and sweet and kind and beautiful. The entire room as well as the dining room had been completely transformed into a sea of yellow, black, white and everything baby. Abby and Ziva had mentioned to several people on the island that the baby's room had a bee theme and they apparently had listened as that bee theme now took over the room.

"Abby what is this?" Ziva whispered.

"It's a baby shower."

"A what? The baby is not even born yet and if he was he would be too young for a shower."

"Not that kind of shower. A baby shower is like a bridal shower. You play games, you eat cake, you get presents. It's a pretty sweet deal."

"I could use some cake."

Abby chuckled and pressed a kiss to Ziva's cheek. "I thought you could. But first, go mingle." Abby punctuated with a smack to Ziva's backside.

Ziva refused to move and reached her hand out for Abby's. "Come with me."

Abby took Ziva's hand and let the Israeli lead her into the heart of the crowd. Never having been to a baby shower, much less been the person the shower was for, Ziva had no idea what to do or what to say or even how to act. She took her cues from Abby and it was quite a while before she let go of the forensic scientist's hand.

However, once she did she made her way over to her favorite resident dance instructor and Abby made her way over to where Gwen and Lillian were sitting. "Anna!"

Ziva waited for Sam to stand up and greeted the blonde with a hug. She had become a lot more comfortable with hugs and overall forms of affection. Abby was a great teacher of feelings and emotions and Ziva was soaking it up like a sponge. "Who is responsible for this?"

Sam winked. "Mostly me and Lil, but everyone helped. Here, sit." She instructed as she cleared a couple of things off of one of the oversized chairs from the library that was directly underneath a big banner that said 'They're Bringing Home a Baby Bumble Bee - Kate & Anna's Baby Shower.' Ziva looked around and noticed a lot of the seating had been pulled in from other rooms in the house and were arranged in such a way that they were all facing where she currently sat. She and Abby hadn't planned on throwing big events like this during any of the many trips they made back and forth to the furniture store. "And these are for you." Samantha explained, slipping some sort of thin fabric over Ziva's head and over one shoulder. "Is your Mommy-to-Bee sash. Get it? Mommy-to-Beeee." She added a Mommy-to-Bee tiara to complete the look. "No Mommy-to-Bee is complete without a crown."

Ziva adjusted her tiara and looked down at the sash. "Thank-you."

"Don't mention it. I'm going to go give Kate hers. I'll be right back."

Ziva watched Sam walk across the room and surprise Abby by putting the tiara on her head. She turned around with a smile and hugged Sam. She did a little twirl once she had her own sash on and then skipped over to Ziva and sat down next to her in the oversized chair. "This is so cool." She excitedly exclaimed. "I've never had a surprise party before."

Ziva chuckled. "Neither have I."

Abby smiled even more, if that was even possible, and sweetly kissed Ziva. When she pulled away something caught her eye. "Ooh cake."

The cake was absolutely beautiful. It was a three-tier gold cake - Ziva's favorite, with yellow frosting, white flowers with yellow centers, little bee decorations and a black frosting ribbon with a single bow at the bottom of each tier. Across the top of the second tier in white frosting read, 'I'm Bringing Home a Baby Bumble Bee…' Abby jumped up and ordered no one to touch the cake until she ran upstairs to get her camera. Lil pushed her back down and gestured to Courtney Richards, the closest person the island had to a professional photographer. Courtney held up her camera. "Smile." Abby laced her fingers with Ziva's with one hand and the other she placed over Ziva's belly as the pair smiled at the camera. "How 'bout a kiss for the camera?" Like Abby would ever resist a reason to kiss the woman she loved.

The shower was a great success. For the first half hour or so Ziva was sure she was going to kill someone. No one would let her get up to get herself anything to eat or drink, no one would let her get-up for any reason. She felt as if she was literally bound to the chair. Abby explained that that was what happened at a baby shower. People did everything for the mother of the baby so she really didn't have to move. It was supposed to be relaxing. Ziva took a deep breath and smiled. If Abby was happy sitting there not moving a muscle except for those in her mouth than she could be too. She did quite like that she was never without a cupcake. She loved the sugary bee that was on top of each cupcake. It worked out quite well too because she only wanted the golden cupcakes and Abby only wanted the chocolate ones.

"No one's had a baby on the island. They want to do it." Ziva smiled at Sam and thanked her.

"I am not used to simply sitting back and relaxing."

"Well, it's only one afternoon." The redhead winked. "I'm sure you can manage."

But after that first half hour Ziva had relaxed considerably. She got a little tense when they played a game where everyone guessed how many inches her belly was around, but she knew it was all in good fun and part of this traditional experience of a baby shower.

They had gotten a lot of really great gifts as well. Courtney, in addition to being their photographer at the shower, had gotten them a beautiful scrapbook that went with the Bee theme in soft pale blue fabric with white felt flowers, white satin clouds and adorable little fuzzy bees. Across the top in black embroidery read, 'Our Little Baby Bee'. It was not easy to bring tears to the hardened Israeli's eyes, but that did. Lil had gotten them a three-tire diaper cake and yes, they did have to explain what exactly that was to Ziva. It had diapers of course, as well as a couple of onesies, pacifiers, bottles, bibs, teething rings and burping cloths - all in the bee theme, a large stuffed bee and a story book about a little bee named Bella Bee and her journey with a couple of friends - a butterfly and a lady bug. Sam, never one to stick to the script, had gotten them a beautiful espresso gold studded Storksak diaper bag. Her daughter Shannon, although only four-years-old had gotten the baby an adorable little pale yellow blanket with satin edging and a little stuffed bee attached at the center. They got a stroller and infant car seat set from Gwen and the other nurses Abby worked with at the Clinic, a high chair in the same pattern from Lucinda Rae, and Ziva's yoga students finished out the pattern with the play yard and swing.

They also got the staples. Lots of diapers, wipes and every kind of cream, lotion and lubricant for little irritated baby backsides, shampoos, soaps and bubble baths, a couple of rubber duckies including one dressed like a bee, a little ducky robe for after the baby's baths, blankets, a monitor set, a mat that when placed under the baby as it slept and could alert parents when the baby stopped breathing, a beautiful collection of picture frames, a wooden Bee growth chart, a breast pump that was supposedly top of the line and as pain free as that kind of thing could get that totally mortified the Israeli, bottles, a bottle warmer, bibs, burping cloths, a plethora of different toys and stuffed animals, a very thorough baby first aid kit, a ceramic bee bank, many books and so many outfits the baby was going to need another closet. There were some unisex outfits, but for each box they opened that contained an outfit for a little girl underneath it was an identical outfit for a little boy and vice versa. There were dresses and overalls and jeans and leggings and skirts and pants and onesie and sweaters and jackets and elastic headbands and pretty hair clips and little footie pajamas and socks and shoes so small Abby didn't believe they would fit on Bella Bee's little feet, never mind the baby's.

Aside from all of the cute baby things they received, Ziva's favorite had to be a bucket of products for her to use during labor which they both hoped beyond hope would help as Ziva would be giving birth without the assistance of anything for pain.

"We have enough stuff here to sink a ship." Abby said as she stacked the last empty box on the sofa.

"I think the fact that I actually know what that idiom means now speaks for itself."

Abby chuckled and plopped down next to where the Israeli had moved to the couch. "Yeah."

"It was nice of Sam and Lil to stay after the shower and move back furniture and help us clean-up." Ziva said as she laid her head down in Abby's lap.

Abby drew her hands through Ziva's dark locks. "It was."

"I do not know how I was unable to pick-up that they were planning something."

"I do. They're sneaky." They both laughed.

"The cake was very good."

Abby stopped running her hand through Ziva's hair and looked down at her. "Is that Ziva code for I'd like another piece of cake?"

Ziva sat up and smiled. "Yes please."

Abby pushed off the sofa and made her way to the dessert table. "You know we really should get some good stuff into you." She said as she looked at what remained of the cake, cupcakes and cookies.

"I did have 'good stuff.' I had a lot of fruit with that strawberry dip and vegetables with ranch dressing and some of those little finger tuna fish sandwiches."

"And I take it the baby wanted all of that in addition to the cake and the cupcakes and the cookies? Not you right?" Abby asked, handing the plate over to Ziva.

Ziva nodded. "Exactly."

Abby sat back down in her spot and curled her legs up underneath herself. "I don't know how you can still be eating."

"Me neither."

Abby chuckled. "That was a good shower."

"Yes."

"I was glad everyone made it." Literally every female on the island had made it including the little bunny Sam had bought for Shannon that morning and the little girl refused to leave home alone. Abby reached over and grabbed one of the picture frames off the end table. It was a wooden frame with bees in the top corners and clouds on the bottom and said the, 'I'm Bringing Home a Baby Bumble Bee…' that was on everything relating to the theme of the party with one of the shower invitations inside. There was also a medium sized box that was yellow with black spots and the top was black with yellow spots with a white ribbon tied at the top. It was one of the favor bags they had left for Ziva and Abby. Inside, each in their own white mesh bag was a large bee shaped soap, three individual containers containing a candle, body butter and lip balm, and a chocolate bar with a very cute wrapper. "They're good people."

Ziva nodded. "I am glad we decided to settle down here." She put a hand on Abby's knee. "It was a good choice."

They sat for a few moments in silence while Ziva finished her cake. When she was done she set it aside. "I suppose we have to move everything upstairs."

"We could." Abby shrugged. "But it's too late for that nap we were going to have earlier so instead I say I'll go build a fire in our bedroom and we can get all warm and snugly in bed and watch a movie."

"I think that sounds like the perfect end to a very good day. As long as we do not watch_ Hocus Pocus_."

Abby chuckled. "Deal."


	24. In Sickness and In Health

I'm re-thinking writing a sequel for this story. I may just finish it up with the last chapter. It's completely do able, but I had a story line in mind for a sequel, which I could use if later on even if I do plan to end this story with the last chapter. I seem to be losing interest in this pairing. I do that. I was really into this pairing, hence why I started writing this story. Now, however I am turning back to a different pairing. I flip-flop a lot. Anyway, when I figure out what I'm going to do I'll let you all know.

Reviews make my world go 'round.  
VillageVoice

* * *

Abby opened the door slowly as to create as little noise as possible and entered the candlelit room. She walked over to the bathtub and knelt down, handing Ziva tall glass in her hands. "I tried to recreate your berry mango madness. Unfortunately it didn't work so well so I got you orange juice instead." She said in a quiet voice.

Ziva smiled and drew a hand out of the tub to accept the glass. "Thank-you Abby."

Abby wiped a lock of hair that escaped Ziva's clip and tucked it behind her ear. "Are you feeling any better?" She let her hand rest on Ziva's cheek, checking for a fever.

Ziva leaned into the touch. "No. Unfortunately."

"I'm sorry you don't feel good sweetie."

Ziva took a shakey sip of her drink and handed it to Abby to set on the edge of the tub. "I just wish it would all go away, the headache, the sore throat, the coughing." She had to stay in the tub for hours at a time just to keep the 'gunk' as Abby called it, from settling in her lungs and making her cough. They were using a lot of water as it tended to get pretty cold pretty quickly, but that didn't matter. All that mattered was keeping her lungs clear because all of that coughing was jostling her uterus in ways it didn't need to be jostled. They didn't want to risk triggering her labor again. The warm water and the steam seemed to be doing the trick and for once Ziva was quite content to just lay there. She was too exhausted to do anything else anyway.

They had taken her to the clinic at the beginning of the week to see what was wrong with her. They tested her for everything under the sun, but all of the tests came back negative. A fact that both relieved and worried both women. On one hand it was good. There was nothing wrong with her that could hurt her or the baby. On the other hand, without a diagnosis there wasn't any specific treatment. It was the common cold. Go home, lots of fluids, lots of rest and wait it out. They'd been waiting it out for almost a full week now. It was beginning to seriously damper Ziva's mood.

Abby dug two oval shaped pills and a smaller circular pill out of her pocket and handed them to Ziva. "Take these."

"I just took them an hour ago."

"You took them four hours ago."

"Really?"

Abby nodded and handed Ziva a bottle of water. Ziva downed the pills without another question. Time was seemingly irrelevant now. "Want me to join you?"

Ziva smiled at Abby. "You should go to bed. You have work in the morning."

"So? I have been getting way too much sleep since we've been here." Abby explained as she started stripping off her clothes. "I think I'm due a personal day anyway." Ziva scooted forward and made room for Abby to climb in behind her. Her pale arms hugged Ziva tightly. "I love you." She said with a kiss to Ziva's warm cheek. They had to make sure she took the over-the-counter medications Dr. Jacobs recommended she take exactly when she was supposed to so that they kept her fever down. A fever was not good for her or the baby. Abby wasn't worried yet though. Her fever stayed down as long as she got the medication. She wasn't looking forward to waking the Israeli in the middle of the night to take her meds, but she would do it.

"I love you too." Ziva sighed and relaxed into Abby's arms. "But you should not be here. If you get sick who is going to take care of me?" She asked with a smile.

Abby chuckled. "I would gladly get sick to spend time with you. But I have dosed myself with plenty enough vitamin C to protect myself from the flu fifty times over."

"Would you like to share?"

"I gave you one with the pain killers."

"You are too good to me."

* * *

"Come on Zi!"

"I am not going! I am staying in bed!"

Abby let out a breath and pushed the front door closed. She took a minute before climbing the stairs and heading into the bedroom. "And just why not?"

"I don't feel good."

"Ziva you know Lawrence said you will get over this faster if you get up and get a little exercise. Going for a short walk will not kill you."

"You don't know that."

"Actually," Abby began, walking over to Ziva." "I do." She said as she pulled the covers off Ziva. "Now let's go."

"No." Ziva pulled the covers back over herself.

Abby backed away. "Fine. But when no one is here to get you water or juice or something to eat or more medicine what are you going to do?" Ziva poked her head out and looked at Abby with a look that said, _'You wouldn't_.' "I'll be downstairs."

Ziva came downstairs four minutes later. Abby bit her lip to keep from laughing. Ziva looked absolutely adorable. Her hair was left down in a mess of dark curls and she was bundled up with big boots, a thick jacket and even a hat pulled down over her ears even though it was very warm outside. It briefly crossed Abby's mind that no one on the island had ever seen Ziva without her hair straightened, but it was enough of a fight to get Ziva out of the house so she was reluctant to push.

They stepped outside and Abby stopped to take a deep breath of the warm afternoon sea air. "Nothing quite like that smell, is there?"

Ziva looked at Abby and tried to sniff, but she was so completely stuffed up that it wasn't possible.

Abby got the point. She looped her arm around Ziva's and steered her toward the path. "Fresh air is good. There's no point in staying in the house breathing in the same infected air. Studies show…"

Ziva groaned. All she wanted to do was lie down in their nice warm bed and sleep until this cold went away.

"And when we get back I will make us dinner and we can spend the rest of the night in bed. Ooh, we should watch the birthing video 'cause you know we haven't yet and we really should."

Ziva groaned again.

Abby chuckled. "Don't worry Zi. I'll take care of you."

They walked in silence slowly around the path that circled around the entire island. The scientist figured that she'd push for an hour walk if Ziva could handle it. They'd walk half an hour and then turn around as it was closer to a two hour walk if they followed the path back to their house. She knew Ziva didn't have that kind of energy in her present state.

"Abby?"

"Yeah."

"I need to use the ladies room."

"Are you serious?"

Ziva stopped walking and looked at Abby. "Abby I have a small human being pressing against my bladder. Yes I am serious."

"Hmm . . . right." Abby looked around. It was Sunday so all of the shops were closed except for the grocery store, but Ernie didn't have a bathroom in there. "Who lives around here?" She mused to herself. "Ah, this way." A few seconds later they were waiting at a door until a familiar curly redheaded freckle-faced child opened the door. "Hey Shannon. Do you think Anna here can use your bathroom?"

The little girl smiled and opened the door wider. Ziva bolted down the hall. "Thanks sweetie. Where's your Mommy?" Abby asked.

"She's in the kitchen."

Abby leaned down and placed a kiss in Shannon's head before heading into the kitchen. "Hey Sam."

"Kate, hey. To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"We were out for a walk and Anna had to use the bathroom."

Sam chuckled and shook her head. "I don't miss those days. How's she doing?"

"She's still pretty sick. I hate that I can't do anything. She's tired, she can barely go half an hour without having to use the bathroom - which I should have thought about when I suggested we go for a walk. She's miserable."

"That sucks." Sam began. "Being pregnant is hard enough without being sick on top of it. Is she a good patient at least?"

Abby raised an eyebrow. "If I could get my hands on a mood stabilizer I wouldn't hesitate to use it."

"I know exactly how she's feeling. At this point you feel like you've been pregnant forever and you're going to continue-"

"Being pregnant forever." Ziva finished as she joined the group. "Something like that, yes."

"Can't be much longer." Sam offered. "Only two weeks left right?" Ziva and Abby nodded. "Take advantage of these next two weeks."

"I wish I could." Ziva said.

"I have something that should help with that." Sam said as she poured whatever she had been making at the stove into a tall glass. "It's completely harmless I swear." She explained as she handed Ziva the freshly brewed red drink. "I took it all the time when I was pregnant with Shannon. I was quite sick for a lot of my pregnancy."

Ziva looked from the drink across the hall where Shannon was quietly playing in the living room. She leaned over towards Abby when Sam turned her back. "It didn't give her that red hair did it?" She whispered.

"Ziva!"

"I do not think that I would be able to claim a red haired child as my own. Look at me."

Abby chuckled as she pushed the drink towards Ziva's mouth. "Drink it."

"Actually it's probably best not to drink it right now." Sam took the drink back and poured it into a travel mug for Ziva. "I forgot it can make you really tired." She handed the mug over to Ziva. "Take it before about an hour before bed, warm-it up first and you'll wake-up feeling good as new."

Ziva smiled. "Thank-you."

"Hold on Shannon has something for you too." She walked over to the doorway. "Shan you want to come in here for a minute?" A few seconds later the clatter of little footsteps was heard running toward them. Sam bent down and whispered something into her daughter's ear before the little girl ran off toward the stairs.

They made idle chat until Shannon came back down the stairs and ran up to Ziva. "Anna?"

Ziva squatted down so that she was level with the little girl. "Yes Shannon."

Shannon brought something out from behind her back. "I drawed this for you."

Ziva took the offered paper and smiled. "It's beautiful Shannon." She hugged the girl. "Thank-you."

"Are you gonna put it on your fridge?" She asked.

Ziva looked over at the refrigerator and saw it covered with hand-drawn pictures like the one in her hands. "Of course."

* * *

Ziva looked over at the refrigerator as she and Abby sat at the island eating their dinner. She had never had anyone draw her anything to be put up on the refrigerator. Shannon's drawing was very cute. It had a big sunflower with a smiling face and bright smiling sun. There were also a couple of misshapen butterflies - she didn't expect Picasso, Shannon was only four, all fluttering around with 'GET WELL SOON ANNA' written in big bold letters across the top. "Why do people hang pictures on refrigerators?"

"Because it's one of the major rooms in a house where families spend time together. Families that have kids old enough to draw pictures spend a lot of time in the kitchen. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks. Kids get to see that their parents are proud of their work."

Ziva nodded, seemingly satisfied with the answer. "Why didn't we put anything up?"

"We have Shannon's picture up."

"Before that."

"Because we spend most of our time in other rooms." She joked.

Ziva smiled and went to say something, but she was interrupted by the need to cough.

Abby rubbed her back until the coughing subsided. "I'm gonna go start the bath. Why don't you drink that stuff Sam made for you? That way when the steam from the bath has cleared out your lungs hopefully it will have made you tired and then you'll actually be able to sleep tonight." She gave Ziva a kiss and headed off in the direction of the stairs.

Ziva looked across the island at the travel mug sitting on the other side.

"It won't give the baby red hair!" Abby yelled down.

Ziva chuckled and walked around the island, picking up the mug. She nuked it for a minute in the microwave and stirred it up really well before she took a tentative sip. She had nothing against red haired children. She actually found them quite adorable, however, because of the means by which her child came to be - almost be, she was growing increasingly concerned as they got closer and closer to the birth of what the baby would look like. She was tanned with dark hair and dark eyes, but the baby's father was not. She knew she would not handle it well if the baby looked like his father with his light complexion and light blue eyes. She just wanted the baby to look like her so she wouldn't have to answer questions about his or her father.

The Israeli shrugged and drank all of the red liquid. There was no point worrying over something she had no control over. The baby would be born and look like whoever he or she was meant to. Ziva just prayed it was her.

"Zi! You coming?!

"Yes!" Ziva yelled back. She took a minute to gather all of their dishes and loaded up the dishwasher then she headed to join Abby in the bath. They were by far becoming her favorite occurrences of the day.

* * *

Abby woke the next morning to the smell of fresh chocolate chip pancakes. She slowly opened her eyes, more than a little shocked to be waking up alone for the first time in a long time. "Zi…Ziv…" Abby tried to call Ziva's name, but found that she could not. She rolled over and groaned into her pillow. "W-hy?"

"Why what?"

Abby turned her head to the right and attempted a smile. Ziva set the tray down on the floor and sat down on the edge of the bed next to Abby.

"I told you you would get sick." She said as she wiped the sweat soaked hair from Abby's warm forehead. "But you were too stubborn to listen."

Abby only coughed in response.

"That means no pancakes for you."

"No! I want pancakes." Abby barely managed to squeak out.

"First we take your temperature." The Israeli bargained.

Abby rolled her eyes, but turned on her back and took the thermometer from Ziva. "Zi you really shouldn't be here."

"I am not going anywhere."

"I can be sick. You can't. You're pregnant. You have to think about the baby." She whispered.

"I am thinking about the baby. She loves being around her Momma."

Abby smiled. "He does, does he?" While Abby was still holding firm to her belief that the baby was a girl and Ziva a boy, they liked to taunt each other by saying it was the sex the other wanted when the wanted something. ie) Ziva saying calling the baby a girl to prevent Abby from throwing her out of the room for the next week.

Ziva nodded. "I called Sam this morning and she's making more of that drink she made for me yesterday."

"I just woke-up. How did you know I was sick?"

"You were coughing all night."

"I was?" Abby asked. "Sorry."

"Don't be. The baby kept me up more than you did."

"Aw Zi." Abby squeaked. "You should've woken me."

"You needed your sleep." Ziva placed a gentle kiss to Abby's feverish cheek. She pulled away and looked at Abby for a second before reaching down to grab the tray she had brought in. Abby really wasn't looking so good. She was pale and her skin was clammy and damn with a feverish sweat and she just generally looked very tired and unwell. "Okay, chocolate chip pancakes, a bowl of fresh fruit and orange juice. I called Dr. Jacobs and told him you have the same cold I did so he has a couple of prescriptions ready for you." Because she wasn't pregnant she could take different and stronger medications than Ziva could which resulted in a few more pills. "I am going to go pick up the drink from Sam and by the time I get there your prescriptions should be ready so I will head over to the clinic to get those. Will you be alright for a while?"

Ziva looked up and Abby was fast asleep. She put the tray on the bench at the end of the bed and tucked Abby back in. Writing a quick note Ziva put it on Abby's alarm clock, placed another kiss on the scientist's forehead and quietly made her way out of the room and out of the house. With any luck she would be back before Abby woke-up.

* * *

Ziva handed Abby a handful of pills and a glass of water. "Take these."

"I will take them, but after that I am going to work."

"Abby I called you in six hours ago."

Abby threw one of the pills in her mouth and took a sip of water. "What time is it?"

"Just after two." Ziva answered. She was working more in not calling time by its twenty-four hour format. Abby rarely did and no one else on the island did so she found it slipping and replaced with the twelve hour format as more of a way for her to fit in.

Abby took another pill and another sip of water. "I can still go in."

"This would go a lot faster if you took all of the pills at once."

"There are tests I need to run. Some people on this island have serious medical conditions that need to be monitored." She said as she took another pill.

"Dr. Jacobs can run them himself if they are that important."

Abby scoffed, downing another pill. "That man couldn't diagnose a toothache without me."

"I am sure that the nurses will be able to help for a few days."

"A few days? Ziva let's talk about this."

Ziva pushed Abby's hand to her mouth so that she would stop procrastinating and take the rest of her pills. "We could." She pushed the glass to Abby's mouth and waited while she took a few large sips. "But that would require you actually being able to talk. Right now that is not your strong point." She joked.

Abby handed Ziva her glass and folded her arms over her chest. "I was nice to you when you were sick."

Ziva set the glass on the night table and leaned down to press a gentle 'quick so I don't get sick' kiss to Abby's lips. "This is me being nice." She handed Abby a black rose she had hidden behind her back. "I picked it up on the way home."

Abby took the rose and smiled. "Thank-you. That was sweet."

"I do try sometimes you know." Ziva said as she took the glass of Sam's healing drink mix and handed it to Abby.

"No you don't." Abby said with a sip. "You don't have to try. You're just a kind, sweet, loving and wonderful person."

Ziva chuckled. "I see those pills _kick in_ fast, yes?"

Abby smiled and as soon as she had finished her drink she wiggled herself down so that she was now lying flat on the bed. Ziva went to tuck her in, but Abby slapped her hands away - gently of course. "No. Now I am going to go to sleep and you are going to go . . . away. And I don't want to hear it Ziva you're not looking out for the best interests of you," She began, motioning to Ziva and her belly. "So I have to look out for the best interests of you and the best interests of you are for you to not get sick." She took a minute to clear her throat. "So go." She whispered.

Ziva took a deep breath. "Are we really going through this again?"

Abby shook her head in the negative. "No because you're leaving. Or maybe I should go in one of the guest rooms. Yeah I'll do that."

Ziva pushed Abby back down. "Let me tell you a story." Abby pulled the covers up to her chin and waited for Ziva to begin her story. "It is a story of two women, two countries and eighteen months." Abby's smile faded. "Abby I was away from you for almost two years."

"It would have been two years if you didn't stage your own death." Abby added.

Ziva's face softened at how adorably sick Abby sounded. "It would have. Most likely a lot longer, but the point is that I could not bear to be away from you any longer. We were apart longer than we were together in our relationship. I know that there is nothing in my past that supports what I am saying. I know that. But I will never again leave you Abby." She brushed a few stray hairs from Abby's face. "Not even for a couple of days."

Abby smiled and yawned sleepily. "Okay. You can stay."

Ziva pulled the covers back and snuggled up against Abby. However her belly was now big enough to get in the way. Abby pushed her on to her side and curled up against her. "Ziva?"

"Yes?"

"I love you too."

Ziva placed a kiss on Abby's forehead and they were both fast asleep within minutes. They woke-up the next morning feeling better and more rested than either had in a long while.


	25. For Now

No new NCIS tonight :( Hopefully this can help to fill the void.

VillageVoice

* * *

"I really think we should draw up wills."

Ziva stopped buttoning her shirt back up and looked over at Abby. "What?"

"Wills. Like what we want to happen if one or both of us die. We have to think about the baby Ziva and make some sort of plan for what should happen to her if something happens to us. It's not just about you or me anymore."

"Maybe we should discuss this at home Abby." Ziva said as she reached for her jacket.

Abby held out Ziva's jacket out and helped the very pregnant woman get her arms in. She resisted a laugh when the two sides of the zipper didn't make it anywhere near close enough to zip around Ziva's belly. Although with the temperature outside she didn't understand why Ziva felt the need to wear a jacket in the first place. "Okay, but we will talk about it right?"

Ziva placed a hand on Abby's cheek and gave her a kiss. "We will talk about it when we get home."

Abby smiled and grabbed the ultrasound pictures off the desk. Their thirty-nine week appointment had gone very well. Dr. Jacobs was impressed that Ziva had been able to make it this far in her pregnancy considering the rocky patch they had at the beginning of her seventh month. However there were no other episodes of pre-term labor nor contractions so Dr. Jacobs was now comfortable taking Ziva completely off of bed rest as her pregnancy was now considered full term and if she did go into labor that would be a good thing. Ziva was relieved, but with her energy so low she was spending more time in bed now than when she was actually on bed rest. He also said that the baby's head was down and in the perfect position for a natural delivery. Ziva was also two centimeters dilated, but she had been since her thirty-seven week appointment so he didn't think that meant all too much.

After the appointment Ziva and Abby headed back to their house to drop off some things and warm up their boat. They still had a hard time getting used to it - especially Ziva who had only been on a boat a handful of times before they came to New Zealand, and all for NCIS cases. They had to pick-up a package they had waiting at the post office on the mainland. They had an arrangement on the island. Because not everyone traveled to the mainland on a regular basis they had other people pick up their mail when they were there. But packages had to be picked up by the people they were addressed to per orders of the post office. So thus they went to pick up their package of birthing supplies they had to have shipped in because the clinic didn't have all of the supplies they needed and there was nowhere within driving distance on the mainland that carried the supplies either.

"Abby, when someone in my family writes a will they typically have a need for it very soon after. It is bad luck."

"Did you have a will when you were with NCIS?"

"No. I know it is only a …" She paused for a second to think of the right word. "…a superstition, yes? But it has never gone well. My Mother made one shortly before she died, I have had a lot of friends who have made wills and then died. My Father never made one. His advisors made one for him and he signed it, but he refused to make one up himself. I-"

"No need to explain I totally understand."

"But I do agree that we should have something in place for the baby in the event that something were to happen to both of us."

"Zi since you're the biological parent you'll also have to put what you want to happen to the baby if something were to happen to you."

Ziva looked at Abby with a confused look on her face. "You would keep the baby. Wouldn't you?"

"Of course! But I have no biological tie to this baby so if something were to happen…"

"It needs to be in writing from me."

Abby nodded. "Yeah."

Ziva took a deep breath and let it out. "If you were to write something up, as me, I would sign that. But I can't Abby, too much has happened. I . . ." She shook her head. "I can't."

Abby leaned over and kissed Ziva. "I'll do it. You won't have to worry about a thing." She hopped out of the boat and held her hand out to help Ziva hoist herself out as well. There was a silent agreement that the conversation was now over. It had been months, with the exception of that one incident when Ziva saw her Father's bodyguards, that either woman had felt like they were being watched or followed, but they both knew you could never be too careful. "You know what I think?" Abby asked as she looped her arm through Ziva's as they headed down the dock. "I think it's time we get some Halloween decorations. You said we had to wait until October. We're into the second week of October already. I think its only time that we-"

"We can get Halloween decorations Abby."

"Really?"

Ziva nodded. "I have never understood this holiday of Halloween, but it is important to you. And we will have the baby then and even though he will only be a week or so old it is important we start introducing him to all of our traditions and celebrations."

Abby threw her other arm around Ziva as they continued walking. "I knew there was a reason I loved you."

Ziva chuckled. "Oh, is that the reason?"

Abby smiled. "One of the hundreds of thousands, but yes. It's one of them." She hit the remote on the keychain in her hands and unlocked the car doors. Lil owned the car, but she let them use it as it was pretty impossible for Ziva to walk much of anywhere in her current condition.

Ziva scooted into the passenger side and turned to Abby once the doors were closed. "What are you thinking for the decorations?" She asked.

"We're having a haunted house."

Ziva looked straight ahead. "This should be interesting.

Abby started the engine with a smile on her face. "Oh yeah."

* * *

Ziva loved going to the mainland. She didn't get sea sick anymore so she and Abby usually took a trip there either on Saturday or Sunday every week. They would go to lunch at their favorite Italian restaurant and spend the next few hours shopping. By the time Ziva bought a new outfit and brought it home she had already outgrown it. She was getting bigger by the day and outgrowing clothes faster than Abby had ever seen. But it was always fun. There was an incredibly large mall within walking distance from the restaurant as well as a few adorable little boutiques. So they would buy Ziva a few new outfits, buy the baby a couple of things, get some more pieces for the house as they were still in the process of furnishing it and stop by whatever store Abby wanted and pick up a few things she wanted as well.

This time she wanted to stop at '_Holiday Excitement_' which was this seasonal store that was different every time they saw it. This month it was Halloween. Abby smiled and dragged Ziva into the store. Once inside Ziva sat back, literally as her ankles were swollen and carrying around a baby wasn't as easy as carrying around anything of a similar weight, and watched as Abby dashed in and out of every isle, more and more things in her cart with each turn.

"Zi! They have real pumpkins! We can carve them tonight and bake the seeds!"

Ziva smiled at the older woman's enthusiasm. She had never carved a pumpkin, but she couldn't imagine seeds tasting all that good. However, she would try them with a smile on her face for Abby. After all Abby did have good tastes for the most part. Those pumpkin flavored cupcakes with licorice frosting left a lot to be desired, but Ziva usually liked the things Abby baked.

"Ooh and a Halloween recipe book!"

Ziva could imagine all the cookies and cakes and drinks and fake blood covered treats that would soon take over their house. Not that she would complain. The baby had quite the sweet tooth. Ziva was good at making meals, but so far Abby had been the only one to satisfy her cravings . . . in more ways than one, but in the baking sense only Abby could seem to create snacks Ziva and the baby really liked.

Ziva brought a hand to her big belly and smiled. "Abby!" She called.

Abby stuck her head out from around a giant mummy. "Yeah?"

"Your son has hiccups."

Abby skipped over and sat down next to Ziva. She placed a hand on Ziva's belly and chuckled at the quick, jerky movements. "Aw, does my little girl have the hiccups?"

"There is a good chance this baby is going to be born and have serious gender issues."

Abby chuckled, but ignored Ziva's comment. She had been reading too many baby books. There was a difference between reading enough to be prepared and reading too much that it made you paranoid about every tiny detail that could ever go wrong. It was just yesterday that Ziva was asking what they would do if after the baby sloughed off the downy body hair it had in-utero and swallowed too much of it in the amniotic fluid. Abby pretty much tuned her out at the mention of the equivalent to a human hairball. "You're belly's lower."

Ziva nodded. "It happened last night."

"What like just last night?"

Ziva nodded again. "When we went to bed he was up here." She gestured a big above where her belly currently was. "And I woke-up and he was down here." She put her hands on either side of her belly.

"You know they say if you carry high it's a girl?"

"I was carrying high now I'm carrying low. What do they say about that?"

Abby took a minute. "More shopping?"

Ziva laughed. "Go."

Abby gave Ziva a kiss and bounced off in the relative direction she had been in prior to the baby hiccup event.

Ziva sighed and looked down at her extremely swollen belly. "I hope you take after her." She looked back up at Abby picking up a large black cauldron and smiled. "I hope you will be that happy one day."

* * *

"Ziva! Everything looks amazing!"

Ziva came out from the living room and greeted Abby with a kiss. "I am glad you like it. I did not know exactly what to do, so I looked at the decorating book and…" She trailed off looking around.

Abby's mouth dropped open. The house looked amazing. Like something out of a magazine, which it sort of was as Ziva based it off of one of the Halloween decorating books Abby had bought along with the plethora of Halloween decorations they got when they were out over the weekend.

The entire house was draped in a shroud of darkness - literally and figuratively. All of the previous curtains had been replaced with black lace fabric with silvery glow-in-the-dark spiders and spider webs, and red glow-in-the-dark pumpkins and bats. There was a black carpet runner going down the stairs matching the curtains with crimson edging that matched the welcome mat inside the front door. Faux spider webbing material covered the corners of every window and along the stair railing from the top all the way down to the bottom. There were bats hanging from the ceiling, two jack-o-lanterns in every room, a very realistic skeleton chillin' on to the right of the last stair step with a large black cauldron by his feet that would be used for candy on Halloween, a couple of little ghosts in each room as well as candles placed all around the house. And even though Abby couldn't see it at the moment, the bathrooms had been redone as well with new shower curtains, rugs, curtains, toilet seat covers and everything else Abby could ever have hoped for in the bathroom of a haunted house.

"Zi!" Abby smiled and wrapped her arms around Ziva's neck in one of her bone crushing hugs. "When did you do this?"

"Today."

"I was only gone for eight hours. Well, more like seven 'cause we met for lunch."

"I know. I also worked on it early this morning when the baby would not let me sleep."

Abby pulled away. "How early?"

Ziva shrugged. "One am."

"You started this at one am?"

"Yes."

"Ziva I really wish you'd wake me up when the baby doesn't let you sleep."

"Well" Ziva smirked. "Someone has to have the energy to stay up with the baby at night once he is born."

Abby smiled and took another look around. "This is . . ." There were no words as far as the forensic scientist was concerned.

"I didn't do everything. I thought that you would want to do some things as well."

"What's left?"

"Everything outside." They had lights to go around the entire house - like Christmas icicle lights, but on black wire with black and orange lights instead of white. There were tombstones to put up, a few undead to partially bury, more pumpkins to be carved and transformed into jack-o-lanterns to be put outside and truthfully, Abby couldn't remember what else. She had gone a bit overboard. Even with the baby's costume. The baby would only be a week old if he or she was born on Ziva's due date, but even so Abby had bought two little bee costumes - one for a boy and one for a girl even though she knew the baby was a girl. She was beginning to think that they were perhaps going a little overboard with this whole 'bee' theme as well, but this was their first baby so they were expected to go a little, if not completely, nuts.

"I was thinking that after dinner we could start. Although it is probably going to take more than just one night." She said. "Oh, and I baked some pumpkin seeds. I'm not sure if they turned out well or not, but-"

Abby silenced Ziva with a kiss. "I'm sure they'll be great!"

"I made some sort of pumpkin cake … thing. It was in your recipe book. So we can have that after dinner too or after we decorate outside."

"No."

"No?"

"No we are not having it after we decorate outside because we aren't doing that tonight." She wrapped her arms back around Ziva, hugging her so tight she could feel the baby kicking through Ziva's belly. "Because you have done enough work today."

"Dr. Jacobs said-"

"I know what he said, but Ziva even though I know you're tired of being pregnant and you just want this little one out of you, you still need to take it easy and rest. You need to stay healthy for the both of you. The more calm and relaxed you are, the more calm and relaxed the baby will be."

Ziva pressed a gentle kiss to Abby's lips. "There is nothing calm about this child. I think someone has been slipping him Caf-Pows when I am not looking." She winked.

Abby chuckled. "Because that's totally possible."

Ziva shrugged with a smile. "I would not put it pass you."

Abby placed a quick kiss on Ziva's lips. "Past me Ziva." She corrected as she gently swatted Ziva's backside pushing her toward the kitchen. "Now let's eat. I worked hard for my paycheck today and I'm hungry."

"What's so hard about running blood samples?" Ziva questioned as they headed through the formal and dining rooms into the kitchen. "The machine does all the work."

"Hey! I think you need to get out and do something. All this staying at home has given you an attitude."

Ziva's response was to turn around and stick her tongue out at Abby before running, or briskly waddling, into the kitchen. Abby chuckled to herself. Living here was good for them both. If it wasn't for the fact that they were thousands of miles and many time zones from everyone they loved she would want to live there forever. But for now, right now was good enough. For now.


	26. Bull

Sorry I didn't post last week. My internal clock was off last week. I thought Tuesday was Wednesday and assumed that I'd already posted for the week. Sorry about that. But here you go. Only 4 more chapters left after this one.

VillageVoice

* * *

"Abby I cannot stay pregnant another day. My skin cannot stretch anymore and there is no way that I can get any bigger without falling over." Ziva ranted as Abby entered the room with a tray of food she deemed better for Ziva than everything the Israeli was eating. Ziva was hoping that by eating hot and spicy foods it would 'force' the baby out.

"If you keep eating that you're only going to give yourself really bad heartburn and make yourself sick." She grabbed the plate away from Ziva before she could grab another bite. "You cannot keep eating that much."

"If my stomach is full there will be less room for the baby." She protested.

"And it will force the baby out?"

"Exactly."

Abby shook her head. "Well I'm the one whose gonna have to listen to you complain for the rest of the night, so I say you're done." She handed Ziva a plate of delicious looking pasta in place of the other food that was so spicey it burned the Goth's lungs without her even having a taste.

"What is this?" Ziva asked as she shoveled a forkful into her mouth.

"Its pasta salad I made with some herbs that are known to induce labor. It's much better for you that what you've been making."

"I am a good cook." Ziva protested.

"When you're not trying to drown yourself in spice, yes."

"I am simply trying to make my body less . . . what is the word?"

"Hospitable?"

"Yes, hospitable. I am trying to make my body less hospitable so the baby will not want to stay any longer."

"Hate to say it Zi, but it's not up to the baby. And even if it was she wouldn't want to go anywhere because she loves you too much." She placed a gentle kiss on Ziva's cheek and bounced out of the room.

Abby did feel bad for Ziva. She was now three days past her due date and more miserable than Abby could ever remember seeing her. She was actually quite huge and she wasn't sleeping and her entire body was swollen. Abby did all she could to help, but there wasn't really much she could do especially given Ziva's incredibly independent nature. However, nowadays she was more than happy to just sit or lie around and let Abby do whatever she wanted - especially when she felt so inclined to give Ziva foot massages. Ziva had never been a foot person, she found feet more than disgusting which is why she was rarely without socks, if not shoes. Abby always volunteered whenever Ziva mentioned how much her feet were bothering her.

Abby sat down at the computer in the office and put her head in her hands. She needed to think of something to do for Ziva, but what? Anything Ziva would have enjoyed pre-NID, new identities, as she was calling it, was out of the question. As was anything that required . . . any travel really as Ziva couldn't do too much walking and she swore her bladder had shrunk down to the size of an acorn, once Abby had explained how small an acorn was. They had also agreed to stay close to home now that Ziva was past her due date so anything off the island was off limits too. Abby sighed. Abby would know the perfect solution to this problem, but Kate was clueless. It had been so long since Abby had been Abby that she felt like they were two completely different people.

An idea popped into the scientist's mind and she quickly ran upstairs to check on Ziva. She found her fast asleep and snuck across to her bedside table to grab her camera. She snapped a quick picture for the baby's photo album before writing her a note saying that she had to go into work quickly to work on something and that she should be back by four. With a gentle kiss she ran down the stairs and was out the door.

* * *

"I don't feel like I'm doing enough." Abby said as she plopped herself down at one of the dining room chairs.

"Trust me" Sam began, sitting down across from Abby. "You are doing plenty. All I really wanted when I was pregnant was for someone to be there. Someone to tell me that it was okay that I was crying all the time or being overly emotional, someone to tell me I wasn't the size of a house." They both laughed. "You're doing great. Anna appreciates it."

"Did she tell you that?"

Sam shook her head. "She doesn't have to. When I was as pregnant as she is I was a complete mess. Worried that noting was ready, that I wasn't going to be a good mother, that my body would never go back to what it was before I was pregnant. When I say I was a mess, I was a _mess_. You could tell just by looking at me. But Anna is completely at ease. She's relaxed and not worrying about what's to come because she has you."

Abby smiled. "Do you . . . Can I ask you something."

Sam nodded.

"Do you think it would have been different for you if Shannon's father had been around?"

Sam shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. But I'll tell you this, you are doing great. Anna doesn't need some big gesture right now. All she needs is you. And knowing that you have been there and will continue to be there with her and that baby. Anything else she needs she'll ask you."

Abby scoffed. "The only way Anna will ask me for anything is if there is absolutely no way she can get up and get it herself."

"Miss Independent huh?"

"Fiercely. But I mean it has kept her alive all these years so I guess it isn't all bad."

"What do you mean?"

Abby's eyes went wide. How could she cover this one up? "Oh you know her home life growing-up wasn't that great so she had to fend for herself a lot."

Sam nodded in understanding and Abby thanked her lucky stars when she left it at that. Abby chuckled. "I wouldn't be surprised if one of these days she goes into labor and doesn't tell me until after the baby's born."

* * *

"Okay," Abby began hoisting several full brown paper bags up onto the island in the kitchen. "I got everything you asked, but I really don't think it's going to work. And it's not very good for you either." She added, checking the label on one of the boxes. She shook her head and set it aside. "But hey," She mumbled. "I'll try anything just to get you to shut-Oh hey Ziva."

Ziva smiled weakly in greeting as she entered the room. One hand on her back, one on her protruding belly as she made her way to one of the chairs at the island.

"Still no change?"

Ziva grimaced. "No."

"Then whats with the face?"

"I am forty-one weeks pregnant."

Abby nodded. "That would do it." She went back to putting the groceries away.

"Sam dropped this off while you were out." Ziva held up a cup of lavender colored liquid.

"She isn't boring I'll give her that."

"Can you zop it for me?"

"What?"

"Zop it." Ziva reiterated. "In the microwave."

Abby chuckled as she took the drink. "Zap it."

Ziva waved her off. "I will be in the living room."

Abby nodded and 'zopped' the beverage in the microwave. "She would tell me if she was in labor . . . right?" She eyed the doorway. "Yeah. She would." She turned back to the groceries. "She would." She looked around the room as if searching for the answer before she bolted out of the room, hot drink in hand.

_"What are some of the signs of labor?" Abby asked._

_Sam smiled. "Aside from the pain?" She joked. "There are contractions, she can pass her mucus plug-"_

_"The what?" Abby interrupted._

_"You don't want to know. Anna knows she'll tell you."_

_Abby nodded. "What else."_

_"Aside from her water breaking, the contractions are the biggest thing. Braxton-Hicks contractions are irregular and mostly only painful in the belly, but when they start becoming regular, more painful both in her belly and back and closer together she may be in real labor."_

Abby handed Ziva her drink and dragged the blanket off the back of the sofa, draping it over them both as she cuddled up to the Israeli. She casually laid her arm across Ziva's belly as they watched whatever show Ziva had turned on. Some documentary about different war and battle strategies used by warlords in ancient Greece and Rome. Abby wasn't surprised. They had watched a program on the same channel earlier comparing weapons of today with earlier weapons and which were more effective for the time and more effective in general. It was interesting, she'd give it that. But right now she was on a mission. Operation Determine Whether or Not Ziva is in Labor had commenced.

"So how's my little girl doing today?"

"Our _son_ is doing fine. He, however, thinks that he still has a lot of room in there when he does not. Talk to him maybe he will listen to you."

Abby casually glanced at the clock over the TV when she felt a contraction start. "Maybe she would behave if you would stop calling her a boy." Ziva grimaced, but Abby let it go for the time being. "Alright now little girl listen. You're not a little baby anymore. You don't have all the room in there that you used to so you need to stop practicing those soccer kicks."

"If it is a girl, which it is not, but if it is she will be taking dance."

"What if she doesn't want to?"

"She will not know what she wants at three."

"Three? As in three years old?"

Ziva nodded. "Yes. That is when I started dancing and my sister, our mother before us and her mother. It is a family tradition."

"Okay. We can sign her up for dance, but if she wants to do soccer she can do that too right?" Ziva looked over at Abby. "Call it a family tradition of my own."

Ziva nodded with a smile. "She can do soccer too." She leaned over to kiss Abby. After the kiss Abby noticed a very subtle sigh escape her love's lips that she probably wouldn't have noticed if not for the fact that she was on a mission. She looked over at the clock again and mentally logged the length of the contraction. All that was left to do now was lay back and gather more evidence. She bent down to Ziva's belly and placed a kiss right where she felt a sharp kick. "Be good."

**-2 Hours Later-**

"Hey can we watch that forensic program now?" Abby asked as the credits started to roll.

Ziva nodded. "But you will have to change the channel." She handed the remote over. "The batteries are dead and I cannot stand-up at the moment."

Abby glanced at the clock. "Why not?" She smirked. "You in pain?"

Ziva took a deep breath. "No. I am just tired."

Abby jumped up. "Bull!"

"What?"

"I call bull."

"You want to call an animal?"

"No. Bull. It's like I'm calling you out on your blatant lie."

"I am not lying. I _am_ tired."

"I don't doubt that, but that's not the reason you don't want to move."

Ziva raised an eyebrow. "I do not know what you are talking about?"

"BULL! Ziva David you are in labor!"


	27. Halloween Night

I am very excited for this chapter. Hopefully you all will like it as well. Definitely the longest chapter to date but there's a good surprise at the end. I know you have all waited long enough for this chapter so here it finally is. Most people voted that they thought Ziva was having a girl with the second highest vote being twins. Now we shall see who was right. Also, it was my birthday yesterday and I will gladly accept reviews as late birthday presents :)  
VillageVoice

* * *

**2 Days Before Halloween**

"How cool would it be if the baby is born on Halloween?"

"Abby he is not staying in here another two days."

"You don't know that. The contractions stopped and Lawrence said it could be any day now."

"Yes, but let us hope that that day is today. If I have to stay pregnant for another day I am going to cut him out myself. Dr. Jacobs has been wrong before. He wanted me to go back into the hospital the week after they released me because he said I was definitely going to go into pre-term labor again, but I never did." Her eyes lit up as an idea hit her. "Maybe he did something. Maybe the medication he gave me to stop my contractions did . . . something and that is why the baby is not out. It prevented my body from . . . making contractions."

Abby chuckled. "Well I hope she comes out soon. For your sake. And my own." She whispered. "And because she won't get to wear the adorable little costume I got her."

"Oh Abby you didn't?"

Abby winked.

"What did you get?" Ziva asked with a smile.

Abby jumped off the couch and ran upstairs. Ziva chuckled as she heard Abby running around. When she got back she thrust two little costumes at Ziva. "How freaking cute are they?"

"They are very small."

"They're for a baby. You don't think she's going to be born weighing twenty pounds, do you?"

"I hope not."

Abby took the costumes and stuffed them back into the bag. She couldn't wait to see all the little kids in their costumes. Ziva didn't feel much like dressing up this year, not that she dressed up any other year, but Abby did. It took her a while to find the right costume. After all this year whatever costume she picked did have to cover all of her tattoos. But she had come up with the perfect costume and she didn't even have to buy anything for it. She was dressing as a lab tech - a sexy/geeky lab tech. She was wearing the white lab coat she wore at work, her red and black plaid mini skirt with a tight black button-up shirt with only the middle few buttons buttoned and was borrowing a pair of Ziva's high-heeled boots she hadn't worn in months that were thick in the heels so Abby could actually walk in them. She was also planning to wear her glasses to cover the 'geeky' part. It was the perfect disguise. Dressing up as real self while pretending to be someone else. She could be herself; if only for one night.

Abby grabbed the blanket off the back of the couch and guided Ziva to lay down on her lap so that she could give her one of her famous head massages that almost always put the Israeli right to sleep. With the excitement they were anticipating come Halloween night, today was a lazy kind of day. They had a lot of Abby's Halloween movies to get through and with Halloween being in only two days and the baby coming anytime Abby wanted to put a good dent into the last of the movies while they still had time. Right now they were watching the last of the funny and musical Halloween movies starting with Beetlejuice, a personal favorite of Abby's. After that it was The Nightmare Before Christmas, although not really a Halloween movie Abby liked to watch it on Halloween. Beetlejuice wasn't really either, but again Abby liked to watch it on Halloween.

"Tony would be proud." Ziva said.

"Of what?"

"Me watching all of these movies. He always said that I did not watch enough movies."

Abby smiled and laced her fingers through Ziva's long, dark curls. "I think they'd all be proud of you right now."

Ziva grabbed Abby's hand and placed a kiss on her palm. "I believe they would be proud of _us_ right now."

Abby chuckled. "Wait 'till we start the horror movies. Then Tony would really be proud."

Ziva sighed. As hardened as she was and with as much as she had seen, horror films still scared the life out of her. But these movies could be the last few movies she and Abby had time to enjoy together for the next few . . . years. So she was eager to watch as many as she could with Abby.

**

* * *

****1 Day Before Halloween**

Abby had finally finished putting the finishing touches on her 'laboratory.' She had originally planned on being a sexy/geeky lab tech, but the more decorating she did and the more body parts she pulled out of the bags of decorations the more she realized she needed to change her costume, 'tweak' it if you will. So instead of the sexy/geeky lab tech she started out as she turned into a crazy/bloody/sexy lab tech. She kept her original costume, sans glasses, and planned to tease and hairspray her hair up all crazy-like, button her shirt on the wrong buttons, rip a pair of her red tights and splatter fake blood all over herself and her sparkly white lab coat. She was pumped.

The new 'Labby' was in the formal and dining rooms complete with real Bunsen burners that would boil different colorful liquids, two autopsy tables one with a fake corpse with a Y-incision and various organs spread about and the other with a fake corpse under a sheet, toe tag slipped out. Abby brought the laptop in from the office and popped up some really creepy pictures of a step-by-step guide on how to create a Frankenstein. Jars were spread around the rooms with various body parts and little creatures floating in different colored liquids. Abby was planning on transforming some pumpkins into punch bowls and putting peeled grapes into some of them. Apparently they felt the most like real eyeballs. There was even a casket that someone would be popping out of periodically next to the fireplace and a whiteboard above it with complex chemical equations written out.

In one of the back corners there was an enormous spider web with real looking hairy tarantulas over where the spider-themed deserts would be placed. A skeleton was in the other corner with an arm draped over his mummy friend. Abby had named him Steve and the mummy she called Bob. Just because they looked like those names and they would be accompanied by the skeleton and mummy-themed desserts. All of the pumpkin-themed deserts would go around the pumpkin punch bowls and everything else would be placed wherever they could find room. It was going to be the best Halloween party ever . . . as long as the fog machine stopped acting up and decided to produce some actual fog. Everyone would start arriving as soon as the trick-or-treating hours were over so Abby had to get everything ready as soon as she could so she wouldn't be completely overwhelmed trying to do everything in the few hours before trick-or-treating started tomorrow. She was not going to leave this until the last minute.

But first she had to find her camera. "Hey Zi have you seen my camera?" Abby traveled into the living room where she had left Ziva in front of the TV. "You seen my camera?"

"No." Ziva replied barely taking her eyes away from the screen. She was watching Men in Black, for like the fifth time since Abby first introduced her to the movie.

"Are you going to watch anything else today?"

"No."

"Are you conscious?"

"No."

Abby nodded. "Have fun then."

"No . . . wait, what? Abby?" Ziva called, but Abby had already run out of the room. She shrugged and went back to the movie. Abby would have turned the movie off if it was important. Ziva had offered to help Abby set-up the lab and whatever else needed to be set-up, but the scientist had declined her offer. She wanted Ziva to rest and let her body prepare for and do what it had to do.

Ziva sighed. She would lay down doing what she had to do while Abby ran around doing what she had to do. Maybe between the two of them something would get done whether that be bringing a child into the world or unleashing Abby's enthusiasm for her favorite holiday upon the Island.

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Ziva woke from her nap just as the credits were ending with a sharp pain in her belly. Figuring they were just the same Braxton-Hicks contractions she had been having the past couple of days she got up and popped the second Men In Black DVD into the player and stretched out a bit. After a few seconds the pain disappeared so she checked in on Abby in the kitchen and smiled. There was flower and icing and various kinds of batter everywhere. Dishes were piling up in the sink and Abby was currently trying to get something sticky out of her hair. Ziva covered her mouth to suppress a laugh and grabbed Abby's camera from the shelf. She turned the flash off and took a quick picture before replacing the camera to the shelf and rejoining her soul mate: the couch, in peaceful slumber.

xxxxxxxxxx

"Ziva? . . Ziva?" Abby placed her hand on the side of Ziva's face and brushed her thumb across the Israeli's tanned cheek. "Ziva?"

Ziva slowly opened her eyes.

"Are you okay?"

Ziva closed her eyes. "Yes." She answered. "Why?"

"You were making noise." She explained. "You were . . . whimpering."

Ziva's eyes shot open. "I do not … whimper. What is a whimper?"

"It's . . . it's like when you . . . kind of . . . It . . ."

Ziva waved her off. "Doesn't matter. I was not whimpering."

"Okay." Abby nodded and placed a gentle kiss on Ziva's forehead. "I just have to run to Sam's real quick. Shannon's father is challenging the custody agreement -yet again, and wants Shannon to live with him permanently so Sam has a phone conference with her lawyer and needs someone to watch Shannon for like an hour, tops. Of course we really know that all he wants is more money and he'll go away for another couple of months. Will you okay for a little while? Do you need anything?"

"I will be fine and no I do not need anything." Ziva shook her head and yawned. "But tell her that drink she gave me did not work."

"Except turn you into a zombie." Abby muttered under her breath.

"What?"

Abby smiled and kissed Ziva. "Love you. Be back soon." She bent down and placed a kiss on Ziva's belly. "Don't go anywhere 'till I get back."

xxxxxxxxxx

"Abby!" Ziva shot-up and tried to breathe through the pain as Abby had instructed her to do after watching some labor video. "Abby!" Still no response. "ABBY!" Ziva looked around the room. This pain was different; definitely not fake contractions. She waited for the pain to subside before she grabbed the baby book off of the end table and turned to the labor section. 'How To Tell if You're in Labor' After a couple of minutes of scanning the pages she made a mental note of everything to look for and went into the kitchen to clean up the mess she knew Abby had probably forgotten about. That woman had an amazing memory, but it was quite a selective memory when it came to cleaning.

"Ah!" Ziva doubled over as another contraction hit. She breathed through it and it was over in less than a minute. If another few contractions came with the same spacing as the first two and lasting as long or longer . . . well, she just hoped that Abby got home soon.

xxxxxxxxxx

"ABBY!" Cleaning the kitchen took a good while, but along with a clean kitchen came the realization that Ziva was definitely in labor. And Abby was still at Sam's playing babysitter. There was no way that Ziva could walk all the way down there and she tried Abby's cell, but whereas she couldn't tell exactly where it was she knew it was somewhere in the house as she heard the familiar ringtone each time she dialed the scientist's number. She didn't want to try Sam's landline because she was in a conference with her lawyer. The only option left was to breathe, try to stay calm and relaxed and wait for Abby to get home.

xxxxxxxxxx

"Zi!" Abby closed the door and rushed over to the stairs. "Ziva?" She was uncomfortable leaving Ziva in the first place but after that hour she was supposed to watch Shannon for passed and Sam needed her to stay longer an uneasy feeling came over her. With no response coming from upstairs she checked in the living room and saw Ziva sitting in the middle of the floor with her legs crossed 'butterfly style' as she told her young yoga students and her eyes closed. "Ziva?"

"Shh…"

Abby placed her bag on a chair and joined Ziva on the floor. Assured that Ziva and the baby were okay she then noticed the dimmed lights and classical music playing softly in the background. "Are you okay?"

"I thought you were only going to be gone for an hour." Ziva replied in a very calm voice.

"I thought so too. Sorry. I tried to call, but I left my cell . ." Abby trailed off noticing her cell lying beside Ziva. ". . here."

Ziva nodded, still keeping her eyes closed.

"Are you okay?"

"We are fine." She said as she let out a strong, steady breath.

"You in labor?"

"Yes."

"How long have you been having contractions?"

Ziva peeked at the clock across the room. "A couple of hours."

Abby shook her head. "We need to work on your communication skills."

"My communication skills are just fine."

"Yeah you just choose not to use them."

"But they are still fine. You are the one who left your cell phone here."

"Good point. I'm here now do you need anything? Do you want to move upstairs or into the tub? How's the pain?"

"One question at a time." She breathed as the contraction finally passed and she opened her eyes and looked at Abby.

"How's the pain?"

"Worse than the other day."

"You should have called Sam's house. She would have understood."

Ziva shook her head. "It's fine. This time the contractions are going to result in a baby."

Abby grabbed Ziva's face in her hands and leaned in for a kiss. "We get to meet our baby." She said through tears.

Ziva smiled and grabbed one of Abby's hands, squeezing it hard. "Once this contraction passes . . ." She let out a slow, steady breath. "We really need to decide on a name."

* * *

**Halloween**

"I told you Ziva you're not ready to have this baby yet. The contractions aren't close enough apart."

"I don't care what you say" Ziva began as she squeezed Abby's hand. "He wants to come out."

"And _she_ will. But not right now." Ziva collapsed against the back of the couch once the contraction passed. "Here, turn away from me." Ziva turned around and Abby brought her hands to Ziva's lower back. Unlike the contractions she had a couple of days ago the contractions she was having now were causing pretty severe back pain. Abby hoped that a massage would help ease some of the pain or at least make Ziva a little more comfortable.

"Abby," Ziva began as she gritted her teeth through another contraction.

"Yeah?"

"I have been thinking."

"Ziva how about right now you think about breathing through this contraction." Abby coached, rubbing circles on the Israeli's lower back.

"I do not like the name Kaia."

"I thought you did?"

Ziva took a couple of low, deep breaths. "I changed my mind."

Abby shrugged. "That's fair. But in all fairness I gotta tell you, I really don't like Noah."

"You don't?" Abby shook her head. "Why?"

"I kind of dated this guy named Noah in college. Not exactly a time of my life I look back on with a smile."

Ziva sighed as the contraction finally passed. "That is also fair."

Abby leaned back against the couch. "You do realize this means that in a few hours when she is born she won't have a name right?"

Ziva nodded. "Nope. He won't."

Abby nodded. "Wonderful."

Ziva braced herself as another contraction hit. "I just want him out."

Abby brushed a few sweat-soaked hairs from Ziva's forehead and smoothed the rest of her frazzled hair down. "She doesn't want to leave her mother. Think of how cool it is in there. It's warm, she doesn't have to do anything but swim around all day, she doesn't have to worry about food. It's a pretty sweet deal."

"Well I want her to leave." She looked down at her belly. "I give you permission to leave."

"You tell me how much you mean that when she's leaving for college."

Ziva sighed. "I will remember this day."

"Are you sure you don't want to try the tub? We can turn on the jets."

Ziva shook her head and leaned into Abby's touch. "Not yet."

"I'll go grab the heating pad."

"Could you bring me some water too?"

Abby placed a kiss on Ziva's cheek. "Sure. Yell if you have a contraction."

The plan for today had been to watch a movie early in the day so that they could use the rest of the day to finish everything up with the decorations and the baking. Now, however, the plan was to make Ziva as comfortable as possible. Abby hoped that by putting in the scariest movie she owned that Ziva's mind would be so wrapped up in the movie that she wouldn't notice the pain as much. Ziva looked up at the screen and screamed as the demonic clown showed up in the mirror looking back at one of the main characters. She looked away and shut her eyes as tightly as she could. Once the part was over and the dialogue returned to normal non-demonic speech she looked up.

Abby ran back into the room. "Another contraction?"

Ziva grabbed the remote and turned the TV off. "Never put that movie on again."

Abby hid her smile and nodded. "But it worked, right? It takes your mind off of-"

Ziva grabbed Abby's hand as all of a sudden she felt a rush of warm liquid leave her body. She looked up from the clear liquid on the floor to Abby. "That means the baby will come soon, right?"

Abby grimaced. "Not necessarily."

"What does it mean?"

Abby looked away. "That labor is going to get more painful and intense."

"More painful than it has already been?"

Abby nodded. "Hopefully now your labor will progress faster. But it is gonna hurt more." She smiled. "But hey, we're going to have a baby soon . . . hopefully."

The Israeli let out a long breath and looked back up at the blank TV screen. "You should have told me about this movie. I would have watched it a lot sooner."

"I did. I tried to get you to watch this movie last week, but no. You said to wait until Halloween."

"You should know better than to listen to me."

Abby chuckled. "I should by now shouldn't I?" Ziva nodded. "Alright let's get you up and changed."

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Abby ran down the stairs, taking them two at a time to open the door and stop the bell that had Ziva swearing in more languages than Abby knew existed.

"Sorry." Sam apologized, entering the house and shutting the door once Shannon followed her in. "This is the last trip I promise." With Ziva in labor they couldn't very well throw a party downstairs when Ziva was giving birth upstairs. Abby crossed her fingers. '_Hopefully giving birth_.' They would have the party another night, but there was no need for all of the cakes and cookies and cupcakes and punch and other goodies they had already made to go to waste. They could make more. As for what they had now Sam was taking the majority of it for a bake sale they were having on the mainland to raise money for something. Something about buying a big boat for the school so the kids could go on field trips. Abby didn't really know nor particularly care. She was a little busy at the moment.

"Yeah." Abby nodded. "Everything else is right-"

"ABBY!"

Sam smiled. "Go. We know where everything is. And here," She began, handing a travel mug to Abby. "For Anna. It will ease the pain of the contractions so she can get some sleep before the baby's born."

"Thank-you."

"And we're leaving the big cakes." She shouted up the stairs after Abby. She turned to Shannon. "They're going to need something to eat when that baby is born and they're too tired to do anything other than sleep."

Shannon giggled.

"Maybe we should make them some real food before we leave. Unlike you, they can't live on cake." She guided her daughter toward the kitchen. "I just pray that baby is nothing like you were."

Abby kneaded the muscles deep in Ziva's lower back. So far it was the only thing, besides the tub, that gave any relief to Ziva's contractions. There was only so long she could stay in the tub without her skin getting wrinkled and the hot water running out.

"Why are the contractions not coming closer together?" Ziva asked.

"They are. They're just not doing it as fast as you would like." Abby answered. "We could always call Lawrence. I'm sure he'd make a house call for his favorite patient."

Even in the middle of a strong contraction Ziva rolled her eyes. "I bet he would."

Abby chuckled.

"Is it dangerous right now? For me or the baby? Are things progressing too slowly that something might be wrong?"

"No." Abby shook her head. "You're good, baby's heart rate is nice and strong. Everything seems fine." When she went back to D.C. for her birthday, Abby had stopped and spent the day in LA so that she could take an eight hour introductory course in 'baby birthing' as she called it. It was basic, but covered all of the bases. She had also been taking a couple of classes on the mainland twice a week. She kind of told Ziva a little white lie and said that they needed her to work an extra day down at the lab when she really snuck over to the mainland for a three hour class once a week and another that was two hours a week she took when she and Ziva made their weekly trips to the mainland. That added to the reading she'd been doing and the videos she'd been watching made her a lot more confident to deliver this baby than she had been when they first discussed the topic.

"Then we will wait." Ziva gritted her teeth.

Abby smiled and nodded; the only thing she could do really. She already put a call into Dr. Jacobs and there was a helicopter standing by on the mainland if anything happened. "_Standard protocol_" he said. This baby was the first baby ever to be born on the island so they were taking all possible precautions. Dr. Jacobs' brother was a helicopter pilot so he put a call into him whenever he needed a favor. Apparently his brother owed him a lot of favors.

"Maybe I should try walking. I read that that can sometimes help move labor along."

"We can try, but there really isn't any place to go up here. We can walk around the room or the hall I guess."

"We have the entire house Abby. It is quite big."

"Ziva you can't walk around the entire house."

"Why not?"

"Because if you do somehow make it down the stairs there is no way you are going to make it back up. I know you want to have the baby in the water, but I don't think the ocean is the best idea. The tub's warmer. And fish free."

Ziva chuckled. "Then we can walk around here."

And they did. They walked around the room, which granted was pretty big, they walked down the hall to the baby's room, took a walk in there hoping the baby would want to come out and see all of his or her stuff, walked past the windows along the back of the house to the other side of the floor, walked past the two guestrooms, walked out onto the balcony on the front of the house, back into the house, back into their room and started the process all over. Many, many times.

They were both exhausted. Neither had slept much through the night and with all the walking their energy was just about depleted. Abby suggested Ziva try to get some rest as she was going to need all the energy she had when it was time to have the baby, but with the contractions coming closer and stronger she couldn't.

"You know if we went to the hospital you could get an epidural and sleep. Pain free."

"Is that when they stab the big needle into your spine?"

Abby nodded.

Ziva sighed and leaned back against the pillows on the bed. "Even if I was in the hospital I would not get that."

Abby leaned back next to Ziva. "I sure would."

"Really?"

"In a heartbeat. Medicine advances every day, why not use it?"

"Yes, why use it?" Ziva responded. "Putting a needle into your spine? That does not sound enjoyable."

"Ziva I am a scientist. I will always take science over . . ." She thought for a moment. "Pretty much everything else. Diseases have been wiped off the planet. Vaccines have decreased mortality rates and increased the life expectancy-"

Ziva grimaced. "You have made your point."

Abby smiled. "Thank-you."

"What time is it?" Ziva asked as she took a sip of the lime green beverage Sam brought for her.

"Just after noon. Why?"

Ziva downed the entire mug and pulled the blankets up. "Because I have been in labor for almost twenty hours now. It is time for a nap."

"Can you sleep?" Abby followed suit and pulled the blankets up to her chin.

Ziva shrugged. "We will see. Even if I can't sleep you still should. We are going to become parents tonight. At least one of us needs to be able to stay up with him tonight."

Abby leaned over and gave Ziva a quick kiss before scooting back over to her side and getting comfortable. "I'm so on it."

xxxxxxxxxx

Abby tip-toed out of the room careful not to wake Ziva. Whatever Sam had given her had put her into a deep, peaceful sleep. Hopefully by finally being able to sleep Ziva's labor would speed up and they would have a baby before the next Halloween.

Having a feeling that Ziva would be waking up soon she headed into the kitchen to make some tea. A canister she didn't recognize was sitting on the counter with a note in front of it.

_'Red raspberry leaf tea - It has been shown to speed up labor as well as promote relaxation which is always important before having a baby. There is eggplant parmesan__ in the fridge Shannon and I made earlier. Some people say it can help bring on labor or strengthen the contractions, but we just think it tastes good.'  
-Sam & Shannon_

Abby smiled and put the kettle on to boil, grabbing Ziva's favorite mug from the cabinet and setting it beside the tea. "Can't hurt." After all it was only tea. The kettle whistled and Abby poured the hot water onto the tea leaves. She took her time mixing the drink and went for a walk through her laboratory while she waited for the tea to cool a bit.

She stood in the middle of the two rooms and looked around. "This would have been really cool."

"It still can be."

Abby smiled over at Ziva. "Maybe for us. Trust me I was there when my brother had Rebecca and then the twins. For the first few weeks all you want to do is sleep. When the baby's awake you're awake and when the baby is asleep you're asleep." She shook her head. "No time for parties."

Ziva followed Abby into the kitchen. "I will be able to watch the baby by myself for a couple of hours."

Abby waved her off. "It's okay."

"No. You should have your party Abby." Ziva began, carefully settling herself at one of the stools at the island. "You have been looking forward to it for weeks."

"I tell you what," Abby placed the tea in front of Abby. "When and if we have the party we will do it together. As a family."

"Yes." Ziva smiled and sipped her tea. "As a family."

"And she can wear her little bee costume." Abby jumped up and down in excitement. She always went crazy shopping for baby clothes when her niece was little and then for her nephews. It was even better now that she got to shop for her own kid.

Ziva shook her head with a chuckle.

Abby sighed. "Anyway how are you feeling?"

"Good."

"Are the contractions any closer together?"

"Yes." Ziva nodded. "They are about a minute apart now."

Abby choked on the water she had been chugging, feeling unusually parched. "They're what?"

"A minute apart." She winced. "Perhaps shorter now. That drink Sam made . . . The pain is . . . not bad, yes?" She asked. Making sure she used the phrase correctly.

"Yeah-A minute apart? Why didn't you tell me? We need to get you upstairs and into the tub."

"I did not know until I woke-up. That was the best few hours of sleep I have had in a long time. Do you think she could make some more?"

"No point in getting more." She said, helping Ziva to her feet. "The baby's coming and with or without the drink you're not going to be sleeping. Come on."

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"Ziva PUSH!"

"I don't want to."

"What?" Abby repositioned herself on the back edge of the tub. "What do you mean you don't want to? For the past nine months all you've been saying is that you want the baby out."

"Abby do not be ridiculous. Perhaps the past nine weeks, but not the past nine months."

"Same difference. All I'm saying is that the baby is here. She is right here Ziva and she wants to be born." She reached over and gently guided Ziva's chin up until their eyes connected. "You don't have a choice in the matter."

Ziva smiled. "Nice prep talk."

"Pep talk."

"Same difference."

"Leave it to you to be all sassy when you're about to have a baby. Now . . . are you ready?"

"No." Ziva gripped Abby's hands as a contraction peaked. "But I will do it anyway."

"Good. Now push!"

"Wait. We should decide on a name first."

"Ziva David stop stalling. PUSH!"

Ziva grabbed the back of her legs and pushed as hard as she could.

"Good, good." Abby coached. "Five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten and breathe. And again one-"

"What no break?"

"For a crazy ninja chick your stamina isn't what I thought it would be. In bed is one thing, but-"

"One, two…" Ziva began counting for herself as she pushed.

Abby smiled and took over. "Three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten." She placed a hand on Ziva's exposed belly and felt the contraction stop. "Now you can take a break."

Ziva leaned her head back against the pillow Abby had placed on the edge of the tub. She took a few deep breaths. "We really need to talk about a name."

"Okay so talk." Rather than speak Ziva made a face letting Abby know another contraction was hitting. "Again?" She asked.

Ziva nodded and grabbed her legs again.

"One, two, three, four, five-"

"AHHHH…"

"-six, seven, eight, nine, ten."

"Is this going to be much longer?"

"That depends on you. Again. One, two, three, four - Ziva I need you to push harder - five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten. Ziva you need to push harder."

Ziva took a deep breath, grabbed the back of her legs, put her chin to her chest and pushed with every ounce of strength she had in herself. Tapping in to pool of strength she hadn't used in a long time. Not since she fought for her life in Russia.

"One, two - excellent Ziva - three, four, five - I can her head keep pushing - six, seven, eight, nine, ten. Again. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten. And breathe."

Ziva took a couple of deep breaths and tried to relax her body with each breath. She knew that the more relaxed she was the easier this would be.

"One more push like that and I think her head will be out."

"Can you see it?"

Abby smiled. "Yeah."

Ziva nodded. "Okay." A panicked expression quickly came over her face. "I should get out of the tub."

"No. Ziva relax. Just stay here the water is helping you deal with the contractions right?"

"Yes, but I do not want the baby to drown. When he takes his first breath he will be underwater. Help me up."

"The baby won't take a breath until she is out of the water. It's the exposure to oxygen that makes the baby take its first breath."

Ziva thought for a moment. "Are you sure?"

"Yes."

Ziva nodded. "Okay. Because I have to push."

"I'm ready." Abby smiled. "One . . . two . . . three . . . four . . . five . . . six . . . seven . . . eight . . . nine . . . ten" She drew out her counting and true to her prediction by the tenth count the baby's head was out. She used her hands to feel around, but refused to look down at the baby yet. She and Ziva would see the baby together. "Head's out. Not long now."

With scary determination and dedication on the part of both women the baby was out and wailing its little head off in no time. Abby smiled as she handed the baby to Ziva.

Ziva looked unsure. "I don't know . . . how do I…"

"Support her head." Abby instructed.

"Her?" Ziva looked down at the baby. "It's a girl."

Abby smiled. "It's a girl."

Ziva smiled and held her daughter close. This was one instance in which she did not consider crying to be a sign of weakness. "I have a daughter." She looked down at the face the tiny baby in her arms as Abby busied herself cleaning out the baby's nose and mouth and clamping the cord. Ziva ran a finger down the baby's cheek. She was beautiful, albeit red, slimy and swollen. Her skin was flawless. It had an olive tint to it, but they wouldn't know what color her skin was until she was cleaned up and dried off. She had long eyelashes and dark, 'M' shaped lips, an adorable little nose and a full head of dark hair.

Abby smiled as she brushed a wet facecloth across the baby's face and hair, eliciting a loud wail from the infant. "You did good."

Ziva placed a hand on Abby's cheek and brought her in for a kiss. "We did good." She looked down at the baby. "You were right. She was a girl."

Abby took the baby and very carefully held her body under the gently running water to wash her body off. Once she was clean she toweled her off and wrapped her in a warm, fluffy white blanket. She placed a kiss on the baby's forehead. "Well," She began. "I had a fifty-fifty shot." She handed the baby back to Ziva. "Now we have a real reason to celebrate Halloween every year."

Ziva chuckled. "Like you need a reason."

Abby shrugged. "No. But how cool is it that she was born on Halloween."

Ziva looked down at her daughter. "It is pretty cool."

* * *

A/N: Poor Ziva. No one believed her that the baby was a boy. About the twins thing, really? I put that there as a joke. Did people really think it was twins? Or did it throw you off so it seemed plausable? Anyway, all those who voted a girl give yourselves a pat on the back.


	28. What's in a Name?

Whoops. Almost forgot today was Tuesday and due for an update. Everyone who thought the baby was a girl give yourselves a pat on the back. Everyone else . . . well, here's a new chapter for you to read.

VillageVoice

* * *

"Colette." Ziva stated, looking up at the sleeping bundle in Abby's arms as she reached up to twirl a soft, dark curl around her finger tip.

Abby looked down at Ziva. "But it doesn't have an 'I' in it. It's tradition in your family."

"It is your favorite name." Ziva responded. "You have had it picked out since you were eight."

"Yeah because I saw a play with this adorable little girl named Cosette, but I thought that sort of name would only be used back in the nineteenth century France so I changed it to Colette. Besides Ziva, this is your baby."

"This is _our _baby." Ziva corrected.

Abby thought for a minute. "I've had Carly picked out since I was eleven. That's only a three year difference, and you can just change the spelling so that it has an 'I' in it. Like C-A-R-L-E-I-G-H or C-A-R-L-I."

"We could start a new tradition." Ziva offered. "You and I both have an 'A' in our name, yes?"

Abby nodded.

"That could be our family tradition. Besides," She took the little pink bundle from Abby's arms. "I think she looks like a Colette." Abby chuckled. "What?" Ziva asked.

"Besides the fact that Colette doesn't have an 'A' in it either. . . I kinda think she looks like a Carleigh."

Ziva looked down at the sleeping bundle in her arms. Gently she stroked her perfectly rosy cheek with the back of a single finger. "I have always liked the name Rebecca. It is a Hebrew name. Or Elisabeth. They both have an 'A' in them."

Abby sighed and dropped herself down next to Ziva on the bed. "We should have thought about this a lot sooner."

Ziva nodded. "Yes."

"Maybe this is a good thing." Abby offered. "We can get to know her first and pick a name that suits her."

Ziva put the baby down in the bassinette beside her. "Always thinking positively Abby."

Abby smiled. "That's me."

A loud wail filled the room and Abby turned to look in the general direction of the bassinette while Ziva quickly scooped the baby back up into her arms. "I do not suppose there is a name for 'she who cries a lot?'" She joked.

Abby chuckled. "Or 'she with great lung capacity.' Here, give her to me."

Ziva gladly handed the screaming baby over to Abby. "She does not need to be changed, she cannot possibly be hungry. Even if she is I doubt I have anything left. Do you have any idea how much breastfeeding hurts?"

"I've heard." She stood-up and paced in front of the bed while gently bouncing the baby in her arms. "Sometime all they need is a little bouncing . . . action." She whispered the last part as the baby's mouth opened wide with a yawn and her bright eyes fluttered closed. "It is hard work being four hours old." She whispered.

Receiving no response from Ziva, Abby was not in the least bit surprised to find her fast asleep. She tiptoed out of the room and brought the baby with her down into the living room. She grabbed her cell off of the coffee table and sat down on the couch, baby still in her arms, and typed up a text message and sent it to Sam and Lil.

_'It's a Girl!  
7lbs. 3oz. 20inches  
October 31st 8:30pm'_

Sam responded immediately, but that wasn't surprising. She was the only one who knew Ziva was in labor. _'Congratz you two. I bet she's beautiful. She have a name yet? Let us know when Anna is up for company'_

Abby smiled. _'No name yet. And she's gorgeous. I'll let you know' _She turned her cell phone off and set it back on the table. She sighed and looked down at the baby sleeping peacefully in her arms. "I could always put you down in the bassinette next to your . . . what does she want to be called again? . . . Ima! I could put you down beside your Ima, but I have a feeling you would just wake-up and start wailing your little head off again. How about we think of a name?"

She scanned the room for the baby names book Gibbs has given Ziva and found it resting on a bookshelf. She got the book and sat back down, grateful that the baby seemed to sleep as well as she did. "Hey look at that. There is actually a name that means 'great wailer.' Not a very pretty name though." She flipped through a few more pages. "How about Lily? Or Rose? I don't think your mother would like her child named after a flower. We need to find you a strong name." She nodded. "A good, strong name." She turned the page and made a face. "Ew. Not that strong. We don't want you getting beat-up … well, we don't want you beating anyone up on the playground."

Ziva came down the stairs about an hour and a half later to find both Abby and the baby fast asleep on the couch. The baby was carefully tucked to Abby's side and the arm of the couch so as she wouldn't fall. Ziva tip-toed into the kitchen to grab Abby's camera and snapped a quick picture for the baby's photo album. She set the camera aside and picked the baby name book off of the floor where it had fallen at Abby's feet. There was a bookmark between two of the pages. She was only able to quickly scan through the marked pages before the baby woke-up. Ziva picked her up before she could wake Abby.

"Hey beautiful." She whispered as she brought the baby with her upstairs into her nursery. It was the furthest room from where Abby was sleeping. Abby had taken the baby downstairs to allow her to sleep so it was only fair that she took the baby upstairs to do the same. "Are you hungry?" She sat down on the glider and lifted her shirt. It took a minute before she relaxed back into the chair. It was such a weird feeling. "As your mother would say, you are something else. I do not understand exactly what that means, but I think it fits." She stroked her daughter's cheek. "You have changed us. Not even six hours old and you have changed us; Me, Abby . . . you changed us. I do not fully know the meaning of that change yet, but I can feel it. And I am glad for it." She placed a kiss on the baby's tiny hand. "I love you."

Abby tip-toed away from the doorway. In the beginning of Ziva's pregnancy Abby had worried that because of how Ziva kept her emotions tucked away that she would have a hard time bonding with the baby. She smiled. She had never been so glad to be so wrong.

* * *

It was their first dinner as a family of three. However, at 1:30 in the morning it couldn't really be considered dinner, but the baby had just eaten, been changed and was currently sleeping and Abby and Ziva were both starving so a 1:30 dinner was appropriate. Abby put two plates of eggplant parmesan on the island.

"We need to discuss something."

Abby nearly jumped out of her skin and flipped on the light. "Ziva I told you to stay upstairs and I would bring the food up. You just had a baby. Even though you won't admit it I know you're in pain." She put her hands on her hips in that, you better do what I say, attitude. "Upstairs."

"About what kind of family we are going to be."

Abby shook her head with a sigh and sat down next to Ziva at the island. "Okay. Shoot."

"Shoot what?"

Abby waved her off. "Never mind."

"I do not want us to be the kind of family that stays inside watching TV all the time."

"Ziva we've only had the baby for a couple of hours. Let's eat and go to bed before she wakes up again."

"I want us to do things." Ziva continued right along. "Together, as a family. I do not want us to go off and do separate things. When I was growing up I was always with my mother. My father was at work or on a mission. I know that he is not the best man in the world, but he was my father. I wanted him home. I wanted to do things with him and my mother. I do not want our daughter to know that feeling."

"And she won't. Ziva, that little girl is going to grow-up knowing that her parents love her and would rather be with her than anywhere else. She is going to know she comes first."

Ziva smiled. "Now we can eat."

"You eat. I gotta go get something to show you."

Ziva nodded and pushed another forkful of food into her mouth followed by long gulp of milk as a chaser. Abby had made her drink milk at least once every day while she was pregnant. She wanted to be sure Ziva was getting enough calcium and it didn't look as though Abby was going to let up on the milk drinking any time soon. Ziva didn't particularly like the taste of milk, but it was good for the baby so she drank it anyway.

"I found it!"

"Found what?" Ziva asked.

Abby held a bag in front of Ziva's eyes. Ziva put her fork down and took the bag. "What is it?"

"Open it. Don't worry it's not going to explode on you."

Ziva put the bag on her lap and pushed aside the pink tissue paper.

"It's from that baby store we went to when we first moved here. While you were in the bathroom I went back and bought it."

Ziva pulled the item in question out of the bag. It was a baby dress. It was red and white striped with a bow in the middle, a little white onesie underneath, red leggings and a little red creature on the bottom left corner Ziva did not recognize.

"It's Elmo." Abby explained. "He's on Sesame Street."

"Is that around here?"

Abby sat down next to Ziva and ravenously attacked her dinner. "Is what around here?"

"Sesame Street."

"Zi don't tell me you've never seen Sesame Street?" Ziva shook her head in the negative. "It's a kid's show."

"And he is one of the creatures on this show?"

Abby chuckled. "Oh yeah. And there is a big blue guy named Cookie Monster, a green guy in a trashcan named Oscar, an eight foot yellow bird named Big Bird, a purple vampire named Count Dracula, an orange ballerina named Zoe and a pink fairy named Abby Cadabby. Then there's always Bert and Ernie, another blue guy named Grover, Mr. Noodle who is an actual person, and I think that's it for the major characters."

"It sounds very strange."

"The kids love it."

Ziva leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on Abby's cheek. "It is very cute."

"I couldn't help myself. I knew you wouldn't let me get it without a matching outfit for a boy since you were so adamant that that little girl sleeping upstairs was going to be a male." She cast a sideways glance at Ziva. "But I had to get it."

"I am glad you did. It is very cute."

"So you said."

Ziva nodded. "And I also say we should finish eating quickly so that we can get in a few hours of sleep before the baby needs to be fed again."

Abby scoffed. "We'll be lucky if we get an hour."

"Really?" Ziva asked.

Abby nodded. "Oh yeah." She looked over at Ziva and their eyes locked in silent agreement. Two minutes later and their food was gone, empty plates hastily thrown in the sink. Five minutes later they were in bed on their way to sleep. Forty-five minutes later the baby woke-up and the sleepless nights began.

* * *

"I've been workin' on the railroad, all the live long day. I've been workin' on the railroad, just to pass the time away." Ziva crept closer to the monitor not sure if she was hearing what Abby was singing correctly. "Can't you hear the whistle blowing? Rise up so early in the morn. Can't you hear the captain shouting 'Dinah, blow your horn'?" Yep she was hearing correctly. Americans had weird nursery rhymes. Why you would sing to your child about a day at work she did not know.

Abby rocked back and forth on the glider as she continued with the song. "Dinah won't you blow, Dinah won't you blow, Dinah won't you blow you ho-o-orn? Dinah won't you blow, Dinah won't you blow, Dinah won't you blow your horn?" She stroked the back of the baby's hand that was wrapped around her index finger. "Someone's in the kitchen with Dinah. Someone's in the kitchen I kn-o-o-ow. Someone's in the kitchen with Dinah . . . and strummin' on the ol' banjo. And singing fee, fie, fiddle-e-i-o. Fee, fie, fiddle-e-i-o-o-o-o. Fee, fie Fiddle-e-i-o and strummin' on the ol' banjo."

Abby leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on the baby's forehead. "I have a feeling your Ima is sitting in the bedroom listening to me and is very confused right now." She quietly joked, as to not wake-up the baby. "And now that you're asleep we can go put you in the bassinette." The baby slept in the bassinette next to Ziva as it was easier for her feedings and because Ziva kept checking on the baby every couple of seconds to make sure she was still breathing. However, Abby liked rocking her in the nursery. Ziva got her bonding time feeding the baby so Abby liked to get her time by rocking and singing the baby to sleep.

"And the princess is asleep." Abby said, carefully laying the baby down in her bassinette.

"Thanks to another one of your . . ." She held her tongue. "songs I see."

Abby chuckled. "You should hear 'On Top of Spaghetti.' Now that one is good."

"And what exactly is on top of spaghetti?"

"Same old, same old. Cheese and meatballs. Special tree-growing meatballs."

"Now that does not make sense."

Abby crawled into bed and pulled the covers over herself with a big yawn. "Nope. But…"

"The kids love it." Ziva finished.

"Exactly."

"Have you thought of any names yet?"

"Nope." Abby said with a yawn.

"In the morning then."

Abby yawned again. "It is morning."

Ziva checked the clock beside her bed before checking that the baby was alright and lying down herself. "Later then."

Abby nodded. "Sounds good."

* * *

Abby turned her cell off and rejoined Ziva and the baby on the bed. "That was Courtney. I asked her if she could take the baby's first pictures for us."

"And?"

"And she can do it next week. She said the earliest she likes doing newborn shots is at seven days, but when the baby is seven days old Courtney is busy so I booked her for when she is eight days old. Until then we will just have to take our own pictures."

Ziva looked up just in time to be blinded by a flash.

"Will you look back down at the baby?" Ziva did as she was told and allowed Abby to capture the supposedly candid picture.

"Do you carry that thing around with you? Ziva asked.

"Since she was born I do."

"Since last night?"

Abby repositioned herself to get a better shot. "Is she only that old?" She snapped off a few pictures.

"Almost twelve hours, yes."

Abby put the camera down and took the little bundle from Ziva. "Seems like she's been here forever." While Abby was busy pushing the blanket out of the baby's face Ziva picked up the camera and snapped off a few shots of her own.

"The baby was due a week ago." Ziva stated. "When do you think Gibbs is going to pay us a visit?"

Abby chuckled. "I'm guessing when she'd be a month old by his book, so probably in three weeks. What's your bet?"

"I think he will call first."

"Too risky."

"So is coming here."

Abby pursed her lips. "True. He'll find a way. He's Gibbs." She looked back down at the baby. "Gibbs always finds a way."

"I have been thinking of what to name her."

"Aw you mean we can't keep calling her 'The Baby' all her life?"

Ziva ignored Abby's comment and grabbed the baby book on her nightstand. She turned to the page Abby had marked earlier and showed Abby. "You had this page bookmarked."

There was a name highlighted.

"The name means complete." Ziva said. "That is what she does, yes? She completes our family."

Abby sat down beside Ziva and looked down at the baby's peaceful sleeping face. "Is that who you are? Were you sent here to make a family out of us?" She asked.

Ziva furrowed her brow in confusion. "She wasn't sent here. It took ten months – not nine as it is forty weeks and forty weeks equals approximately ten months, and over twenty-four hours of very intense active labor to get her here."

"Sent by God, Zi." Abby turned the baby so they could both look at her. "Everything happens for a reason and everything and everyone has a purpose. Maybe her purpose was to bring us together."

"But we were together before I told you that I was pregnant." Ziva said, gently moving the blanket out of the baby's face. It didn't seem to want to stay out of the way.

"Yeah, but she made us a family. Can't get rid of me now." She joked.

Ziva nestled up against Abby and sighed. "Like I would ever want to."

Abby placed a gentle kiss on Ziva's forehead. When she pulled away she realized the Israeli was asleep. A full day of active labor would make anyone tired. She smiled down at the sleeping infant and with a single finger caressed her small pink cheek. "Looks like you have a name little one."

* * *

"Okay everyone listen up please." Abby stood in the dining room in front of the doorway to the kitchen and turned on the lights and turned off all of the music to get everyone's attention. "As all of you know we were supposed to have this party three days ago. However," She motioned for Ziva, who was waiting in the kitchen out of view of their guests, to join her. "We had a good reason."

Ziva picked the baby up out of her swing and stepped into the dining room beside Abby.

"It seems someone finally decided to join us."

Amid a chorus of 'awe's and 'congratulations' Ziva cleared her throat. "This is our daughter."

"And yes she has a name, but you're going to have to guess." Abby held her hand-up as everyone started shouting names out at the same time. "Ah ah ah ah stop. Somewhere in this lab I have placed ten tiles inside pumpkins. Each tile has a letter on it and is hidden within the gooey insides of the pumpkins." Some of the kids laughed. "Now there are a lot of pumpkins in this room but all I can tell you is that it is not in the jack-o-lanterns. It is in an un-carved pumpkin. The tops of all of the pumpkins were cut off so you won't be able to tell whether a pumpkin has a tile just by looking on it. Also, please only take one pumpkin at a time and bring it to the plastic mat in the entry way to search there and please wash your hands when you have finished your search." She pulled a whistle out of one of the pockets of her lab coat and blew it lightly. The baby was sleeping. "Go."

"Oh" She interrupted a second later. "One other thing. Her name isn't ten letters long, but once you find all of the tiles you will have to combine them to make different names and hopefully one of them will be right." She blew the whistle again. "Now go."

She stepped back next to Ziva and watched as all of the kids, and a couple of the adults, went off in search of the mystery tiles.

"You have fake blood running down your cheek." Ziva said.

Abby grabbed Ziva's face and placed a big kiss on her cheek, leaving deep red lip marks on her tan skin. "I know. I did it myself."

Ziva eyed Abby's costume. It was everything the lab rat had wanted it to be. "Here, hold you-know-who."

Abby took the little baby bee in her arms. The costume was a little big, but a few cleverly placed elastic bands and pins to hold excess fabric under the tutu and it fit perfectly. "Where are you going?"

"To get the camera."

Abby shrugged and chuckled as she watched everyone frantically searching around for pumpkins. Looking on the fireplace, under tables and chairs, in bowls and containers, everywhere there was an inch of space.

"Nice trick." Sam began as she walked over to Abby.

Abby shrugged. "I told you you would find out her name at the party. I never said I would tell you or make it easy." Abby nodded toward the other end of the room. "I think your daughter is trying to get your attention."

"This is not over." She said as she left to help her daughter find a pumpkin.

"What is not over?" Ziva asked.

Abby smiled. "Nothing. She's mad I won't tell her the baby's name."

"As Tony would say, 'tough shi-'"

"Ziva!" Abby warned.

"What?"

"Not in front of all the kids."

"Sorry. Now stand somewhere in your lab so I can take a picture."

"Why don't we stand somewhere so someone else can take a picture? Hey Lil!" Abby waved Lil over. "Can you take a picture?"

Lil took the camera. "Can you tell me the baby's name?"

Abby smirked. "I could."

"But you won't."

"Exactly."

Lil sighed. "Fine."

"Thanks." Abby maneuvered the baby onto one arm so she could use her free hand to pull Ziva over to her desk - an almost identical match to her desk at NCIS. The both sat down on the edge with Abby holding the little bumble bee baby and Ziva next to her with her left arm behind Abby holding herself up and her right over Abby's arm holding the baby.

Lil took the picture. "Cute."

Abby winked and stood-up. "Thanks." She handed the baby back to Ziva and took the camera back from Lil, taking a picture of Ziva and her little bee. "Also cute." She turned toward everyone. "For those of you who are abstaining for the name hunt feel free to eat whatever you want there is plenty to eat and drink. Although once the kids find all of the tiles they will probably need some help making names out of them. Also, there are different stations around the room like the eyeballs in the pumpkin, how many hairs on the spider and so on so be sure to visit them all."

"How long do you think it is going to take them to find all of the tiles?"

"These tiles?" Abby asked holding up a bag of tiles.

"You didn't put them in? Abby" Ziva chastised her grown girlfriend the same as she would a small child.

Abby smiled. "Relax Zi." She winked. "These are the extras. The others are out there. Somewhere. The pumpkins may just not all be in this room exactly."

Ziva shook her head and looked down at the baby. "This is what you have to look forward to little one."

Abby leaned down toward the baby's face and placed a kiss on her little nose. "Don't listen to her. You're gonna love it."

Abby wondered off to join in the hunt with the little kids and Ziva stayed back watching it all. "You know what?" She asked. "I think she may be right."

* * *

"How about this?" One of the mothers asked in the little circle the women had made. The kids got bored of the game shortly after they found all of the tiles and were now digging into the deserts and playing games leaving their mothers and the women of the island to wrack their brains in search of the right name. Their Dads could watch them for a little while.

"No. I think the doubles are a trick. Something to throw us off." Sam said.

"That does sound like something they would do." Gwen added.

Lucinda, Lil and Courtney agreed.

"Mommy, does this make a name?" Shannon said, pointing to a name she had made out of the tiles.

Ziva snuck a peek at the name Shannon had tried to spell out as Sam sent her daughter back into the lab in search of a cupcake. Ziva winked across the room at Abby.

"Okay, time is up." Ziva said, surprising everyone with how she was able to get right next to them without any of them noticing.

"Time to see whether you people are as smart as we give you credit for." Abby said with a smirk. She waited until Ziva joined her before she asked for the first name.

Sam was the first to volunteer. "Now you know I'm right about this. Lia?"

Abby shook her head. "No."

"Leila?" She tried again.

Ziva shook her head. "No."

"Leyla?"

"No and your turn is over." Abby said.

"Amy." Gwen suggested.

Abby shook her head.

"Maia?" Came another suggestion.

The name was again met with a negative shake of the head.

"Sara?"

"No."

"Lily?"

"Nope."

"Remy."

"No."

"Alysa?"

Ziva shook her head. Abby looked down at the baby in her arms. "I am beginning to think that we did give them too much credit."

"Allie?"

"No."

"Aria?"

"Getting colder."

"Can we have a minute?" Lil asked.

Abby looked to Ziva who shrugged. "Sure." Abby answered. "Certainly couldn't hurt." She laughed.

After a couple more minutes they turned back to Abby and Ziva.

"We've got it now." Lil began. "Emily?"

Ziva looked away from Abby and pursed her lips to keep herself from laughing. They were going up, down, around and everywhere but to the conclusion they were supposed to be reaching.

Abby shook her head. "Wrong."

"Are you sure?" Lil asked. "I think it is."

"I think it's not." Abby answered.

"Maria?"

"Did you actually think about this?" Abby asked.

"Then it has to be Riley." Courtney suggested.

"No it does not." Ziva said.

"You did include the letters of her name right? This isn't some funny trick?" Ashley asked.

"Not a trick." Abby said.

By this point Ziva had again made her way back to the circle undetected. She motioned for Shannon to come over and whispered for her to make the name she had before. She did and Ziva sent her back to the cookies and rejoined Abby. She took the baby and gently bounced her. She didn't need to be changed and it wasn't time for a feeding yet so she just needed to get back to sleep.

"Okay, are you sure the letters are A, A, E, I, L, M, M, R, S and Y?"

Abby leaned toward Ziva and pretended to discuss it. "Yep pretty sure."

"Shannon." Ziva called. "Can you show your mother the name you made?"

The little girl smiled and ran into the middle of the circle and picked up the tiles. She dropped them into her mother's hands.

"Amme?" Sam asked only to be met with the same look all of their previous guesses had been met with. "This is ridiculous. I love my daughter, but Shannon is four. She barely knows how to spell her own name."

Lil rolled her eyes and grabbed the tiles out of Sam's hand. She spelled them out in her palm and smirked. She pulled Shannon over and whispered something into her ear.

"Her name is Emma." Shannon said proudly.

Abby and Ziva smiled. "Yes." Ziva began looking down at the little girl in her arms. "Her name is Emma."

Abby bent down and placed a kiss on little Emma's head. "Emma Caitlin."


	29. The Team Gibbs Legacy

Just a note on the last chapter, not ever new mother is the same. I'm not saying every new mother can do what Ziva did and I'm not saying every new mother couldn't do what Ziva did. I know giving birth is exhausting, I _know_ that. But I do not think that having a party 3-days after in which Ziva was there for a short time is really too big of a stretch. And unless you are used to it, breastfeeding _does_ hurt. And sleeping shortly after birth is in no way unusual either. I know adrenaline is high during and after birth, but it comes down fast and after that sleep is a blessing ;) So yeah, that's my little note.  
Another little note . . . this is the 2nd to last chapter :(

VillageVoice

* * *

"Maybe we don't have to do this." Ziva said anxiously as she paced around the tiny exam room.

"Ziva" Abby began from the other side of the room where she was getting Emma out of her car seat. "She wasn't born in a hospital, we have to do this."

"Why? Why do we have to do this?"

"Because when a baby is born in the hospital there are certain things they do before they let the baby leave the hospital."

"Like what?"

"Like they do some standard genetic testing and sometimes further screenings, which we should do with Emma as we know nothing about her father or what he and his family may be carrying around. They will probably have to give her a couple of shots. I know for certain she will need her first Hepatitis B shot and possibly Vitamin K, but we will have to discuss that one first."

"Injections? Abby the needles are bigger than she is. And what tests? Do you think something is wrong with her?"

"Whoa Zi calm down." Abby walked over to Ziva and put a comforting hand on her arm. "Here, take Emma. Look at her. There is nothing wrong with her."

Ziva took a deep breath as she very closely examined the little girl in her arms. "Are you sure?"

"Well no." Abby had learned long ago, before she even began to like the Israeli, that lying to her was in no one's best interest. "But so what if there is?"

"What?"

"So what if there is something wrong with her? She will still be our little girl. Would you love her any less if there was something wrong?"

"Of course not."

"Then it doesn't matter. It would just be helpful for us to know that way we could start treatment and know what to expect."

Ziva visibly relaxed and smiled. "Thank-you Abby."

Abby placed a kiss on Ziva's cheek. "Anytime."

"Knock knock. Hi I'm Dr. Hanson." The dark skinned woman entering the room announced. "And this must be Emma."

"Yep." Abby said. "This is her."

"And which one of you is-" She looked down at her chart. "Anna Reyes?"

Abby nodded toward Ziva. "She is."

"And you are the birth mother?" The doctor asked.

Ziva nodded. "Yes."

"And so you must be Kate Biggs?"

"That's me." Abby said.

"And I have permission to share everything I do with you with Ms. Biggs." Dr. Hanson asked.

"Yes." Ziva answered.

The doctor made a couple of notes in the chart and had Ziva sign something. Then she sat down in the chair next to the exam table.

"Zi--Anna?" Abby whispered, looking up at the clock. "Here, give Emma to me."

"Is there a problem?"

"No." Ziva answered.

"She has her post-delivery appointment downstairs in five minutes. Since it was a home delivery we just want to make sure I didn't completely mess up." Abby joked. "We made the appointments forty-five minutes apart."

"Yes, sorry about that." The doctor apologized. "We had a two-year-old meltdown."

"That was just one kid?" Abby asked. The doctor nodded. "It's fine." Abby said as she took Emma from Ziva. "You go down and go to your appointment. I will stay here with Emma and give you detailed notes later."

Ziva looked from Emma to Abby to the clock on the wall before grabbing her purse on the table by the door. She turned back to Abby. "I can reschedule."

"Go." Abby said. "We're good."

Ziva stepped outside with the doctor and after a few seconds of whispered conversation the doctor returned.

"She's a first time Mom." Abby explained.

The doctor chuckled. "I can see that. Is this your first also?"

"Yeah. But I have a brother who has three, so I'm a lot more used to this stuff than Anna is. Every hiccup she thinks Emma is dying."

"Totally normal. Now let's see how the little one is here. You delivered her?"

"Yep."

"You did a good job. She seems nice and healthy. Can I ask you to take everything off of her except for her diaper?"

Abby nodded and took Emma's dress and onesie off, leaving on only her diaper as instructed. For the most part Emma was asleep for the majority of the exam. She had good color, her eyes were bright and alert for the few seconds she was awake, her heartbeat was strong and healthy, her lungs were clear and working just as they should and her reflexes were sure and fast. Abby smirked. '_Just like her mother._' She thought. Ziva had the reflexes of a cat. Emma had lost two ounces since she was born, but Dr. Hanson assured Abby that that too was 'totally normal.'

"Everything seems fine."

Abby let out a breath she hadn't been aware she was holding. She had no idea what she would have done if there had been something wrong with Emma. And how would she have told Ziva? Especially since she assured her that everything would be fine.

"Now I am going to ask you to put her clothes back on and get her all snuggly in that blanket I see you brought because I am going to have to prick her heel for the standard newborn screening." Abby found Emma's blanket and redressed the baby as quickly as possible while the doctor went back to the baby's chart. "Now I noticed that you have Anna's medical history down here, but there is nothing about the father."

"Yeah. Um . . . we don't know much . . . well, we don't know anything about the father." She rephrased.

"Did you use a donor?"

Abby pursed her lips. "Something like that."

"You weren't given a medical history?"

Abby kept her lips pursed and shook her head. "It's . . . complicated."

"Then I would recommend further testing when she is a little older. Right now she seems perfectly healthy and if something shows up on the tests we do today I would recommend further testing, but if everything comes back fine then I would wait a while. But I am going to bring her into another room for a quick minute to run a hearing test."

Abby didn't feel comfortable handing Emma over to this woman she didn't know, so she went with the doctor for Emma's hearing test. Emma had perfect hearing.

Once back in the room Abby sat down and took a deep breath. There was only one more part to this doctor's visit - shots. In order to prevent Emma's pain for as long as possible Abby proceeded to ask the poor doctor every question in the book. From how many diapers was normal to go through in a day to what temperature they should keep the house at even to a large variety of clearly common sense questions Abby couldn't believe she was asking. Whoever said there was no such thing as a stupid question didn't see Abby's pediatric exam room performance. Call it her first time mother coming through, but she asked the doctor questions for a good ten minutes before she finally could no longer come up with another question.

"Any more questions?"

Abby thought for a minute. "No." She sighed. "Oh, when should we make her next appointment?"

"You want to schedule it for approximately two weeks after she was born."

Abby nodded. "And it is normal for her to be eating this much, right?"

"Totally normal."

"Right, of course." Abby mumbled. "Totally normal."

"And you both are free to leave now."

"What about the tests? And the shots?"

Dr. Hanson pointed to the tiny band-aid on Emma's right heel. "Already done."

Abby examined the tiny foot and kissed the band-aid. "I'm sorry baby girl."

"She didn't even flinch."

"Doesn't mean it didn't hurt." Abby mumbled as she put Emma's socks on and strapped her into the car seat wrapped tightly in her fluffy pink blanket. "When will the results be in?"

"You want me to send these to your lab, correct? The one on the island?" Abby nodded. "Since you are on maternity leave I guess that is up to whoever is running the lab in your absence."

Abby smiled. She had a few strings to pull.

* * *

It was usually Abby who rocked little Emma to sleep. However this time was different. This time her little girl has just gotten two shots that Ziva wasn't there for so she felt the only way she could in some way redeem herself was to comfort her daughter now. "Abby!"

It took a couple of seconds, but Abby came racing into the room. "What? What happened? What's wrong?"

"Her thigh is red."

"It's normal Ziva."

"This is not normal. Look."

Abby walked over and examined the baby's leg. In order for Ziva to keep an eye on the injection sites she had the baby only in a onesie and a blanket, folded over in the front so she count continuously check her leg. "It's fine Ziva."

"Abby it is not fine."

Abby took a deep breath to calm herself down. This was her first baby too, but she wasn't freaking out because Emma's leg was a little red. "I will be right back." A few seconds later Abby arrived with a marker.

"What are you planning to do with that?" Ziva asked.

"I am going to trace around the redness so that you can see it is not getting any bigger."

"You are not touching my child with that."

"Ziva it's a marker, not a knife. And it's non-toxic. Completely kid safe. Now move your hand or I will write all over you as well." An intense staring contest ensued with Ziva finally moving her hand and the blanket off of Emma's leg. Abby gently outlines the redness. "There. Now you will actually believe me when I tell you her leg is not getting any redder."

They both let the conversation die on that note and Abby turned to leave, but turned back to say something and noticed Ziva's eyes drooping. "Ziva?"

"Yes?" Ziva's eyes snapped open.

"Why don't you get some sleep?"

"I need to keep an eye on her leg."

Abby resisted the urge to say that her leg was fine. "I can watch her leg." She said gently, holding her arms out for Ziva to hand her Emma.

Ziva stood up and handed the baby to Abby. "Why are you not as tired as I am?"

"I didn't give birth to her. And at NCIS when Gibbs would send you guys home _early_, that was still hours before I ever got to leave. I'm thoroughly versed in the art of sleep deprivation."

"How many times were you offered an assistant?"

Abby stuck out her tongue. "I do my own work."

Ziva nodded and placed a gently kiss on Abby's lips. "You know where to find me." She placed a quick kiss on Emma's forehead before heading toward her own room.

"Yes we do." Once Ziva was gone Abby took up her vacated spot on the glider. "See, it doesn't hurt does it?" She gently brushed her finger over the redness around the two tiny injection sites to make sure it didn't hurt and she hadn't just lied to Ziva. Emma didn't even blink. Abby decided to take advantage of Emma's few moments of alertness to begin her education in the ways of NCIS. After all they had all the time in the world. "It all started with a man named Gibbs, the silver-haired fox. Well it didn't actually begin with him, nor does anyone but me in my head call him a silver-haired fox, but he is the beginning of the Team Gibbs legacy."

* * *

"Abby she is one week old she does not need a cake."

Abby shushed Ziva as she walked into the dining room where Sam, Shannon, Lil, Gwen, Courtney and Lucinda were all waiting. "I know she doesn't _need_ a cake, but why not have one? It takes a lot of work to make it through your first week of life. Why not celebrate it? Do you remember when you turned one week?"

"Of course not."

"See that's because no one celebrated it."

Lil, who was holding Emma, chuckled and stood up. "Well I say we should celebrate things more often. And if the celebration includes cake count me in." The women all laughed. "It was even enough to bring Courtney back from her little wedding shoot."

"Hey it isn't my fault the wedding I was supposed to be shooting today was cancelled due to a little bridal indiscretion."

"No?" Gwen exclaimed with wide eyes.

Courtney nodded. "Oh yes. The groom caught her and her ex the night before the wedding."

"Well," Abby began. "I feel bad for the groom, but I am happy that we can all get together and why not eat cake?" She had recently uncovered a cake cookbook they had sitting on a shelf that looked like it hadn't been touched yet. She set the adorably decorated polka-dot teddy bear cake down on the middle of the table.

"Auntie Kate can I eat the teddy bear?" Shannon asked.

Abby ruffled the little girl's hair. "Sure kiddo."

"Can I hold the baby?"

Ziva nodded. "On the couch." She took the baby from Lil and walked over to the couch with Shannon.

Sam smiled and turned back to the group. "She's been asking for a little sister. She says that when you guys get sick of Emma we can take her."

They all laughed.

"Good luck with that." Abby said. "Even when she's sleeping one of us is with her. She hasn't been out of our sight since she was born. Someone's always been with her."

"That will change." Sam said. "Not for a while, but it will."

"Until then," Gwen began. "We have cake."

"So when is Anna's father coming down?" Lil asked with a sparkle in her eye. "I'm assuming he wants to see his granddaughter."

"Lillian Blake keep your hormones under control." Sam joked.

"I can't help it." Lil defended. "He's hot."

Abby held back a laugh. "I don't know. It's hard with uh . . . with his job." She fumbled. She never was good at making things up on the spot. Not lying to her friends. It made her feel guilty, but it wasn't just her and Ziva anymore. She was even more willing now to do what she had to do to keep up this charade they had built for themselves.

"Tell him to screw the job." Lil said. "This is his granddaughter. Is it his first?"

Abby nodded. "When and if he does come here you are not going anywhere near him."

Lil leaned back in her chair with a huff. "Can we just eat the cake already?"

Abby looked over toward Ziva and waved her over. "Cake time."

"Are we singing happy birthday?" Shannon asked.

"That is a good question." Ziva answered, looking to Abby.

"Um . . . does anyone want to sing?" She looked at Ziva and Shannon then to everyone around the table. No one seemed particularly thrilled. "Then I guess we can just eat cake."

"Hold on." Courtney instructed as she picked up her camera. "Let me get a picture of you guys and Emma before you cut the cake.

Abby joined Ziva on the other side of the table and leaned down slightly so she and Ziva were more equal in height.

"Smile?" They did and Courtney took the first picture of the afternoon. Once Courtney took an up-close shot of the cake everyone dug into the cake and Ziva and Abby, not feeling particularly in the cake eating mood as the majority of what they had been eating the past few days was cake, took Emma upstairs to pick out what outfits she would be wearing for the pictures Courtney was going to take.

"You know we are going to have to do something different for Gibbs."

Abby nodded. "I know. It depends on what announcement we choose, but I was thinking of using the same announcements, just cutting out our names. And we'd have to only use a picture of Emma." They had a few announcements they were considering, but the one they were leaning toward was card-like. It would have Emma's picture over the entire front part with a band of pink on the top and Emma's name in the right hand corner with her initial on the left side and would open up and have text inside. That hadn't decided what yet, but depending on whether or not they would be able to order one card different from all the other it may possibly have to be Gibbs and real life friendly.

"How about this outfit?" Ziva asked, holding out a tiny little tutu.

Abby shook her head.

"A lot of babies on that website were wearing something like this."

"When did you even get that?"

"Sam-"

"We could put her in her bee costume." Ziva vetoed that suggestion. "How about one of her Halloween onesies? The black one with the orange bat would look really cute with her jean skirt or something. Doesn't she have orange tights with black spots somewhere?"

Ziva chuckled. That would be really cute, but she was thinking of something more traditional. "When did you become a stylist?"

Abby shrugged. "I have many skills. Hey, we could go with something cold weather related? It's almost winter in DC. Doesn't she have something with snowflakes around here?" She rummaged around in the closet until she pulled out the perfect outfit.

Ziva nodded. "I like it." The dress was made out of pale blue cable material. It was the perfect balance of the warm weather they were having with its short sleeves and the cold weather they were most likely having in DC shown in the little penguin on the chest.

Abby turned to the drawers under the changing table and rummaged around a few drawers. After a couple of minutes she turned to Ziva holding up a pair of black leggings with white polka dots that matched the buttons on the dress, little boots made out of pale blue suede and white faux fur and an elastic headband with a bow and matching polka dot button at its center. It was all very cute.

"I was thinking this weekend I should take a trip to the mainland. You know, get some girl outfits and such since we only have a couple." They had a few girl specific outfits they got at the shower that had all come with matching boy outfits. That was what they had been using for the past week, but Emma needed more than a couple of outfits. "I have the receipts for the boy outfits so I was thinking I could return those and get some different things. And I could bring our necklaces and get them engraved."

"Just you?"

"Well yeah. You're breastfeeding so you can't be away from Emma for that long."

"Why would I have to be away from her?"

Abby turned toward Ziva. "You want to take her on the boat?"

Ziva thought for a minute. She had forgotten about vast, vast ocean surrounding their current living space. "Is it safe?"

"I don't know. I suppose you could always use the breast pump and we could leave her with Sam or Lil for a couple of hours."

Ziva made a face. She wanted absolutely nothing to do with that contraption. She finished dressing Emma and handed her to Abby so she could throw the clothes she had just been changed out of in the laundry bin. Despite Emma having only been in them for a couple of hours, Ziva's policy was if they were worn they went in the laundry. She grabbed another little outfit Sam had brought over within the past week. Not as extreme as the gigantic tutu, it was a pale pink onesie with a little tutu around the middle. "However we are also getting a picture of her in this."

Abby looked down at Emma, but remained silent.

"Abby?"

Abby nodded. "Yeah." She replied softly, responding that she had heard Ziva's previous statement.

Ziva put her hands on either side of Abby's face and forced her to look up. "What's wrong?"

Abby looked back down at the baby. "I keep thinking. About back home. I know Emma isn't really my daughter, but she may be the only grandchild my parents get from me and they're missing all of this. And my brother. I want to share all of this with them, but I can't."

"Abby, she is your daughter." Ziva sighed. "When I first came to NCIS my life was a mess. My younger sister and my mother were dead, I had just killed my brother and my father was the head of the agency that ordered me to kill my own flesh and blood. I thought that was what a family was; flesh and blood." She made Abby look up again and smiled. "But then you all took me in. First Gibbs and McGee, then Tony and eventually you. You became my family. I have no blood connection to any of you and yet you are the only real family I have ever been a part of. I would die for any one of you. And I promise you your parents will know Emma. They will know their granddaughter."

Abby smiled and brought Ziva in for a bone crushing hug with her free arm. "Thanks Zi."

"You are welcome. No more talking like that, yes? You are Emma's mother as much as I am." Abby nodded as she pulled away. "Good. Now let's go."

"Wait! What are we gonna wear?"

Ziva paused at the doorway. She stepped back to allow room for Abby to walk through. "After you Ms. Stylist." She teased.

Abby sauntered by and smacked Ziva's backside on the way. "This attitude you have developed is gonna get you in trouble."

Ziva smiled. "I hope so."

* * *

Every picture was so perfect they didn't know which to choose. Each captured something different. The shoot hadn't taken as long as they had expected. Courtney wasn't especially a newborn or family photographer, but she had done a few newborn and family shoots and knew that newborn shoots typically took anywhere from an hour to a full school day depending largely on whether or not the baby was in a cooperative mood. But it seemed as if Emma inherited her mother's photogenic likeness which meant the whole picture taking process a lot easier. That and she was sleeping the entire time so they could pretty much do anything with her.

They were planning on buying pictures of a lot of the different shots, but their first order of business was to pick one picture to use for the birth announcement. Most of the people on the island had seen Emma at the Halloween party, but sending out these announcements was a part of the whole new parent experience both women wanted to partake in. It would also be a keepsake for Emma when she got older.

They took pictures in the little ballerina outfit, in the Elmo dress, the penguin dress and just about every other outfit in her closet including a few sans clothing. Ziva didn't quite understand why, but Abby was adamant they needed a couple of naked baby bum pictures. It would be good blackmail for when she was fifteen or sixteen and dating and they made her behave with the threat of showing her boyfriend, or girlfriend whichever it may be, the pictures. Abby vowed to show Ziva her own naked baby pictures as proof that it was her right as a parent. The only outfit they hadn't been able to put her in was a bathing suit they had that was too big to even make it fit with elastics or pins or anything. But they got a picture of her in a swim diaper and a pair of Ziva's sunglasses, so it all worked out.

"We're sure we want to use a picture of her in the penguin dress, right?" Abby asked.

Ziva held up a picture of Emma in the tutu.

Abby nodded. "Penguin dress it is."

"I think that dress is cute."

"If we send Gibbs a picture of Emma in that he is going to come here and take her away from us." She said with a laugh.

Ziva laughed and set the picture aside. "Penguin dress."

The picture they finally decided on after much debate was in fact the last picture Courtney had taken. Emma was passed out lying somewhat propped up on a pillow on the couch in the living room with her right arm up by her face, her little hand touching the end of her eyebrow. Her other hand was tucked up under her left cheek.

They uploaded the picture onto the website that had the announcement they had been leaning toward and put it all together. They figured that that would be the best way to decide whether or not they wanted to use that for the birth announcement and if not they could always play around and use a bunch of other designs until they found one they really liked. Once everything was all together they decided to use the announcement they had been leaning toward in the beginning. They liked the card design more than the regular photo-like announcements. They had also decided to go with a sepia tint to the picture as opposed to using color or black and white. _'It looks . . . more stylish…Elegant?…Fancy?'_ Ziva had questioned. _'Classy.'_ Abby said. _'It's classier.'_

* * *

**3 Weeks Later**

Gibbs had a lot of rules he lived by. The ones he didn't tell anyone; drink at least one glass of water a day, mow his grass at least once a month in the summer and go home a couple of times a week. If only to grab the mail. Such was the reason he was making his weekly trip home. For the past month or so they had been working on a tough case so he tweaked his rule of going home a couple of times a week to once a week. He knew that to stay at his peak he needed to get a good night's sleep and he did that best at home and in his own bed. Despite what he told everyone else.

Now, however the case was over and he had given himself and his team the next three days off to recoup. Except for Tony who had put off doing all of his paper work and had to finish that first. Everyone had worked extremely hard and they all deserved the break. He thought for a second how much his team would have benefitted from having Ziva and Abby. Ziva was a phenomenal agent and Abby was one of the best forensic scientists in the world.

He grabbed his mail and unlocked his door, which he had actually locked as he didn't know how long he would be going without returning home. One envelope caught his eye. Despite the uniformity and plainness of bills and such this one plain white envelope looked different. He didn't recognize the return address, so his first instinct was to put it in a plastic bag and have it tested at the lab before he opened it. But something stopped him from doing that and propelled him to open it.

After a second he set the envelope and its contents aside and put a call into Director Vance. He was taking a vacation. It was the perfect time because they had just finished a case and since Tony had already acted as the team leader he could step in for Gibbs with no problem.

_"When will you be back?"_

Gibbs shut his cell phone. "When I get back."


	30. Life is Good

Once again I forgot today was Tuesday. Whoops. Sorry about that, but better late than never.

Originally I wasnt planning to end it here, but I thought this was a fitting ending. I hope you all like it. Thank-you all for reading as faithfully as you have and for all of the reviews. I have decided to end the story here. I think I ended it up quite neatly, leaving a few things unanswered in case I want to write a sequel, but it doesn't take away from the story without answering them. Hope ya'll enjoyed it.

Just a note about Harley that was mentioned in a review. It is all explained in the chapter where Abby goes back to DC for a visit, Chapter 19. Abby was going to bring Harley back to Australia with her, but she and Abby's niece Becca really bonded and since Becca was having a hard time adjusting to two little brothers Abby felt it best to leave Harley there with her.

Again, thanks everyone for reading. I hope you all enjoyed it!

VillageVoice

* * *

"And that is how you got your name." Abby said as little Emma looked up at her with bright chocolate eyes. "I fell asleep with you the night you were born after looking through the baby name book Grandpa gave your Ima when he came for a . . . _visit._ I bookmarked a page and because your Ima and I know each other so well she suggested the name I had been looking at. But we knew what your middle name would be long before that. Kate was a good person. A great friend and agent. Anyone would be lucky to carry her name." She leaned down and placed a kiss on Emma's forehead.

"I think Gibbs took her death the hardest. Ari-um…well, the person who shot her wanted to get to Gibbs." She didn't know whether it would be a good idea to tell Emma about Ari. He was, after all, Ziva's brother. "But we all lost her." She took a deep breath and smiled down at her daughter. "And then Ziva came and the rest is history."

"Please tell me you are not still telling her about-"

"About our family." Abby said. "We're going to look at the pictures later."

"Well I am going for a run. Will you two be alright?"

"Yeah. That's fine. She just ate so we should be good for a while." Abby tilted her head up for a kiss.

Ziva placed a kiss on Abby's lips and a gentle kiss on Emma's head. "I'll be back."

"We'll probably be down at the beach. Sam is bringing Shannon and Lil, Courtney, Gwen and Luce are gonna come down too. You going for an hour?"

Ziva nodded as she put her hair up into a ponytail. "I will join you when I am done, yes?"

Abby nodded. "Sure. I'll wait to take her in the water until you get back."

"Okay." With one last kiss Ziva headed off on her run.

"Your Ima is crazy." Abby cooed to the baby. When Emma hit four weeks old Ziva decided it was time to get back to running. Literally, the day she turned four weeks. She hadn't been able to at all in her third trimester because of the risk of her going into pre-term labor again, so she was pretty out of shape. But Ziva being Ziva, she didn't let that stop her. She had been running for eight weeks at this point and she was just about able to run as long as long as she did before she got pregnant. Not that she was back to her pre-baby body just yet, but it was greatly helping her shed the baby pounds. Anyone looking at her who didn't know her wouldn't have been able to tell that she had a baby. But for Ziva it was more about getting back into shape than losing the weight. She could protect her family better if she was in shape and ready for whatever may happen.

Abby stood up and placed Emma in her crib. She had slept quite a while before waking up to be fed, but Abby knew that the little girl probably had half hour of sleep left in her. And that half hour could be the difference between a nice, pleasant afternoon and a not so pleasant afternoon. "Just enough time for Mommy to remember where I put your bathing suit. And the umbrella. And my bathing suit." She grabbed the monitor off the shelf and clipped it to her belt. She had a feeling she was going to be looking all over the house so having it attached to her was just easier.

Just as Abby had predicted half an hour later Emma was awake and crying to be picked up. Abby quickly threw a pair of shorts on over her bathing suit and grabbed Emma's suit off the dresser. There were a pair of matching little sandals, but Abby had enough trouble finding everything else that she had a second before Emma went into full meltdown mode.

"Hey hey hey. Little girl." Abby bent over the crib and picked up the screaming infant. "It's okay. Momma's here. No more tears." Abby held the baby right over her heart and her cries soon subsided. Abby brought her over to the changing table and swapped her diaper for a swim diaper and put her in her tiny swimsuit. Abby loved it. It was a one piece. She was in no way shape or form going to let her three month old daughter wear a two-piece. Not until she was at least able to walk. And even then it was either a one piece or a tankini until she was into double digits. They would hold off on the bikinis for as long as they could. On that she and Ziva were in complete agreement.

The bathing suit was navy blue with white polka dots and the straps and edging were in yellow. She had a matching navy polka dot sun hat and white terry cloth cover up. Abby loved it. More for the reason that it closely resembled her own polka dotted bathing suit than for how cute Emma looked in it. Although she did look quite adorable in the little suit. Emma had inherited her mother's olive complexion, but Abby still knew the dangers the sun posed to anyone, especially someone as young as Emma. Because Emma was too young for sunscreen Abby planned to keep her under the umbrella as much as possible venturing out into the water only when a cloud wondered into the path of the sun's rays. But Abby wasn't so she made sure to cover every inch of her own exposed skin even though she would be under the umbrella with Emma. She set Emma in her bouncy seat and lathered herself up with sunscreen. Better safe than sorry.

After making sure the diaper bag was adequately stocked Abby grabbed Emma and headed down to the beach.

"Hello beautiful." Sam greeted as she took Emma from Abby.

"Hello to you too." Abby joked.

"I'm sorry. Hi Kate. She's just so cute I can't help myself."

"Where's Lil? I thought she was coming."

Sam, Courtney, Gwen and Lucinda cast quick glances to each other. Lucking Abby was laying the towels down under the umbrella. They quickly looked away when Abby popped her head back up. "She is. She's just . . . Uh . . ." Sam fumbled.

"She's late." Courtney said. "As usual."

Abby accepted the explanation without question and took little Emma back from Sam. "So," She began. "What's new?"

* * *

Abby looked back at Ziva. She was staying as much out of the water as she could. Right now she had made it up to her ankles. A vast improvement to barely letting the water touch her toes Abby reasoned. "Are you guys going to come in a little more?"

Ziva shifted Emma in her arms and took a few more steps deeper into the water. She made it to about mid-shin.

Abby shrugged and dunked herself under the water one last time and swam inland. "Either you can come with us" She began, taking Emma. "Or you can stay here and watch. But we're going to go play."

Ziva watched as Abby took Emma deeper into the water. She stopped when the water was around her mid-thigh and turned to face Ziva. She raised her eyebrows in a way that said _'I am one of the only people in the world who could kill you and leave no forensic evidence. I won't, but I could. And you know it.' _Ziva was very quickly at her side. Abby turned so that her back was to the sun casting a shadow over Emma. She couldn't wear sun block so they had to protect her from the sun as much as possible. After a quick dunk in the water they would bring her back under the umbrella. Ziva readied the camera as Abby slowly lowered Emma down into the salty water.

Since she was only three months old she couldn't completely support her own head yet so Abby had to hold her in the cradle hold, modified slightly by raising the forearm Emma's head was on. Once in the water Emma's eyes went wide for a second and Abby and Ziva held their breath as the look on her face was usually followed by one of her high-pitched wails. After a couple of seconds, however, she kicked her little legs and decided that the water wasn't all that bad after all. "Zi she likes it."

Ziva smiled. Abby was really taking what she had said about being a family that did things together seriously.

Abby nudged Ziva to get her attention. "You with us?"

"Of course." It took her a second to realize Abby meant mentally not physically. "I was just thinking."

"Penny for your thoughts?"

"I am just very happy. Happier than I ever thought I would be."

Abby smiled. "Aw Zi." She leaned over and kissed Ziva. "I am too."

"Really?"

Abby nodded. "Yeah."

"Is there anything that could make you happier?"

"No." Abby noticed a glint in Ziva's eyes. A glint that usually meant she was up to something. "What did you do?"

Ziva took Emma and nodded toward the shore.

"GIBBS!" Abby kissed Ziva again and ran toward Gibbs and Lil on the shore. Ziva was honestly surprised the woman didn't collapse when Tony and McGee stepped out from behind a bush.

Ziva smiled and followed behind. "I should get one of those _'Life is good' _shirts." She looked down at Emma. "What do you think?" Ziva raised Emma up and placed a kiss on her forehead. "We're going home."

* * *

A/N: Good ending? Leave a review and let me know.


	31. Epilogue

I decided to add an epilogue for you all since a lot of people wanted me to write more, but this is ABSOLUTELY it lol. Hope you like it

VillageVoice

* * *

**2 Years Later**

Ziva tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for Abby to pick up on the other line. Tony was already on the elevator and if she didn't fly down those stairs and make it to the car before he did, there was a real possibility he would leave without her and she would have to walk to their interview.

"_Abby Sciuto."_

"Abby!" Ziva breathed a sigh of relief. "Can you pick Emma up from the daycare?" She heard Abby sigh on the other line and suddenly remembered the Goth's plans with a friend from college she hadn't seen in years. "You're going out with your friend tonight. Never mind, I'll call the babywatcher."

"_Babysitter."_ Abby corrected.

"Yes. I will call her. I'm sorry. Have fun with your friend tonight."

"_Ziva don't hang up."_

"What is it Abby?"

"_I'll get Emma."_

"No, you haven't seen Jamie in a long time and he is only in town for a short time. I will call the babysitter." Ziva had been planning to have a girls' night in, just her and Emma, but McGee was out of town and Gibbs was actually sick enough to go home so that left only her and Tony.

"_Ziva David stop arguing with me, you will never win. I should be done here in an hour or so. I'll call the daycare and tell them that I will be picking her up, but that I'm just running a little late. And then I'll take her home and we'll have dinner, snuggle up on the couch and watch . . _." She thought for a moment. Their little girl's favorite movie changed by the hour._ ". . whatever really. And then I'll read her a story, not as good as you do, but we'll make it work."_

It was tradition in the David-Sciuto household that Ziva read Emma a book before the little girl went to bed for the night. They always had dinner together as a family every night and Ziva always read Emma her bedtime story, but there was a slight difference to how Friday nights went. After having dinner, which they would order out – but only on Fridays, Abby would give Emma her bath before all three of them snuggled up on the couch with a big blanket to watch whatever movie Emma picked out and then Ziva would read Emma her book before putting her down for the night. A change to this schedule usually set the two-year-old into a meltdown.

"_I really wish you weren't going into the field."_

Ziva sighed. "It is just an interview."

"_If Gibbs was there you know he wouldn't let you do this."_

"Yes, but he is not here."

"_Ziva-"_

"Abby I will be safe. I will even wear the belt." She said as she fastened a specially made belt around her middle, making her look bigger than she already was. "You made it yourself. It will protect us." She placed a hand over gentle kicks coming from her belly.

Abby sighed. Ziva was right; she had specially made the belt herself. It wasn't really a belt; it was more of a belly sleeve that was part Kevlar vest, part radioactivity blocker, and part stab-proof material. "_Just . . . be careful."_

"I will. Thank-you Abby. I love you. Give Emma kiss for me."

"_Love you too."_

Ziva threw the phone down in the general direction of its cradle and bolted to the stairs.

* * *

Abby looked at the clock for the thirtieth time in the past couple of minutes. She was sitting on the couch in the middle of their living room with a fast asleep toddler in her arms. She always tried to keep Emma up as long as she could if Ziva was going to be late so she could at least say goodnight to Emma. However, it was almost 9 and Ziva knew that Abby only kept Emma out until 8:30 at the latest so if she wanted to say goodnight to her she knew what time to be home by. Abby sighed and placed a gentle kiss on the toddler's forehead. "Time for bed baby girl."

The phone rang, but Abby grabbed it quickly before it had the chance to wake Emma up. "Hello?

"_Abby, don't put Emma to bed."_

"Ziva? Where are you?"

"_Just don't put her to bed."_

Abby stared at the phone as the line went dead. "Okay then." She set the phone back down in its holder and snuggled into the couch. She was soon fast asleep.

"Abby?" Ziva stroked long, black hair and placed a kiss on Abby's lips. "Abby wake-up."

Abby smiled. "I'm awake." She opened her eyes and gave Ziva a proper kiss. "Everything go okay?"

Ziva nodded as she sat down next to Abby, wrapping her arms around the Goth and her daughter. "I believe so."

"Weren't you there?"

"For part of it, yes."

"What happened?"

Ziva smiled and kissed Abby, playing with the beautiful white gold band on Abby's ring finger. "I told Tony I had a wife and daughter to get home to and they were more important than any interview."

Abby's heart melted. She used her free hand to bring Ziva in for a passionate kiss. "And he didn't fight you on that?"

Ziva chuckled and put a hand over her belly. "I also told him that if Gibbs found out he had brought me out into the field at six months pregnant _and_ that he had kept me out late he would give him the worst head slap of his life."

Abby laughed. "I'm surprised Gibbs didn't see you come home."

Ziva nodded. When they moved back to the US and DC they had bought the house right next to Gibbs. It was a nice, quiet neighborhood and their house was beautiful, not as beautiful as New Zealand, but it was nice. It had a big yard for Emma to play in and two extra bedrooms they had yet to do anything with.

"When are we going to tell them?"

"Tell who what?"

Abby looked from Ziva's eyes down to her belly and back to her eyes.

"They already know."

Abby picked up a picture off the end table and handed it to Ziva. "About this?"

Ziva smiled at the picture. It was their latest ultrasound showing two very healthy babies. "Oh, that."

Abby chuckled and took the picture back. "Yes that."

"A boy and a girl." They both smiled.

"You know," Abby began. "I was thinking of a name for the boy-"

"We are not," Ziva began, stopping that train right away. "Naming him after Gibbs."

Abby shrugged and snuggled closer to Ziva. "Well, it was just a thought."

Ziva smiled and placed a kiss on Abby's cheek and ran her hand through Emma's soft, dark curls. This was how life was supposed to be.


End file.
